need help with new cattleya
 

I bought a Cattleya at the Fort Lauderdale Orchid Show a couple weeks ago. It was in a small plastic pot in a clear plastic bag. I chose this one because there was a bloom about to open. When I got it home I repotted it in bark. The roots are not in good shape. I checked it out today and I think they have gotten worse. This plant has 5 pseudobulbs. Two are older bulbs and the other 3 are either in bloom or in sheath. One sheath is dried up but the other is just emerging. All the pseudobulbs are pretty dried and wrinkled.
I took it out of it's pot today and rinsed the roots with hydrogen peroxide and then water. Very few short roots turn green when watered. Most of the roots are soft but not mushy and gray in color. How can I help this plant to survive.

I would suggest soaking the roots in seaweed (kelp) water. It really helps stimulate root growth. Then pot the plant back into a small pot with some well soaked bark if that is what you are using. I like to use the seaweed water to water or soak the plant again when the bark is dry and it is time to water. Make sure not to over pot the plant and let it get dry or very close to dry before watering again. My Catts love clear pots also.

If you plan to grow this outside most of the year, you could just stick in in a Vanda basket with some red lava rock and water it very well daily. It should quickly recover.
I grow all of my Cattleyas in basket pots and either red lava rock or LECA as I never could quite figure out the watering with bark. The bonus is that you don't need to worry about re-potting the orchid and it will grow all over the basket.

Looking at the flower, I can see why you bought it.

I bought some catts last year that effectively arrived with no roots AT ALL. I think they had one live root each.

I potted them up in coarse bark, and a small twist of sphagnum moss under each plant. The idea was to keep a small amount of moisture underneath it without preventing fast drainage and air movement. The pots also had a row of 1 cm pots drilled into the pot about a third of the way up to maximise air movement. They apparantly do better with the rhizome at the surface.
They reacted as tho they had been planted with a full set of roots.
When I repot them, they are going into really shallow trays with enough space for at least 5 years' growth.

Thanks for all the help. I think I will get some kelp and soak it overnight. I really don't want to pot it so that it needs to be watered every day. It actually has two flowers but the second one to open is not quite open and wilting. The flowers have a wonderful fragrance.

I think soaking it overnight might be too long. But that's just my:twocents:

When I have one in need of help. I soak it for maybe 1/2 hour or 45 mins. Then leave it over night to dry just laying out. And then soak again the next day before repotting. That way the roots aren't terribly soggy and if it is dry before the 2nd soak, it might take up more seaweed rooting hormones as the roots act like a sponge when dry. Just my method, but it does seem to work.

Does your plant have a name? Can we see a better picture of the bloom. It looks like it is nice.

I agree, an overnight soak is too long. Bad roots were probably compromised by too much water, a soak that is too long will make it worse.

The name is RLC Huatand City 'Lucky Star'. It is a small flower for a catt. One pbulb has a new sheath so I hope to be able to get it to bloom someday. It must be a division off a mature plant since it has 3 new leads either flowering or with a sheath.

Silken, how much Seaweed liquid do you mix, let's say, into a quart of water for the root energizer?

I would follow whatever instructions your brand gives. But for mine I would use maybe a tablespoon. I don't really measure, but the water is a fairly medium to dark brown with several brands I have used. I have one that is more green tho as well.