what is happening to my cattleya?

[H.D]

hello all!
i recently got my first cattleya. now many canes are wrinkly, and some are yellowing. one new growth just turned black and came off.
what am i doing wrong?
the plant is shaded, and is over humidity trays.

[estación seca]

When new Cattleya growths turn black and die it is usually because they didn't get enough water, or the plant isn't getting enough calcium.

In this plant I think it's a water problem because not enough water also causes pseudobulb wrinkling. It is a result either of the gardener not watering enough or a poor root system. Did it arrive bare-root or potted? If bare root, it may take a while to recover. A Cattleya with damaged roots may struggle to take in enough water until it forms new roots, which generally grow on new growths. But it may be quite a while after the growth begins before roots form.

You have it potted in large bark. This is a good choice for most Cattleyas. Depending on the temperatures you can water when the bark is approaching dry. The roots shown in the photos are still wet - how long ago did you water it?

[H.D]

thanks for the reply!
it arrived potted in coconut sludge
when i unpotted it, most of the roots were not even 5 cm long. all the roots inside the sludge were dead, mushy and black.
i removed only the rotten roots, because i heard dead roots also passively take up water, as the existing root system is not very good.

i watered it just today. i try to keep on top of the watering, as it is wrinkly.

[estación seca]

That's the best you can do. The hope is the roots are able to take up enough water to make new growth that will make new, healthy roots.

If you could do anything else to raise the humidity that would help. Trays with water under the plant don't do much.

[birdwomn]

I also have questions about a Patricia Lines cattleya I got locally (west central Florida) bare root that was cut from a very large plant a few weeks ago. The grower said to throw it in a tree that got bright light and forget about it until it blooms next year. I realized when I got home that my trees probably get too much shade, so I put it in a basket and added some bark. Now I am just a bit concerned about whether or not it is doing okay and if there is anything else I need to do for it. Thoughts?

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by birdwomn

I also have questions about a Patricia Lines cattleya I got locally (west central Florida) bare root that was cut from a very large plant a few weeks ago. The grower said to throw it in a tree that got bright light and forget about it until it blooms next year. I realized when I got home that my trees probably get too much shade, so I put it in a basket and added some bark. Now I am just a bit concerned about whether or not it is doing okay and if there is anything else I need to do for it. Thoughts?

Google Photos
Google Photos

I would not worry too much about the shade - it may look shady to human eyes, but you still have that Florida sun. A new plant also needs to adjust... a little less bright light will help keep it from dehydrating until you get new roots. The advantage of a pot or basket is that you can move it. But if it is actively rooting, you'd do fine mounting it to that tree, just make sure that it gets watered if Mother Nature doesn't rain on it.

Can't see the photos... did you set the permissions on the links so everyone can see them?

[birdwomn]

So nothing to worry about with the way it is looking?

The other cattleya I got from the same grower is looking much healthier, but I think it was cut from a younger plant. This one came from a HUGE plant.

[Roberta]

I can't see the photos (I get "404 URL not found")
But any recent division will be stressed somewhat.

Try posting the photos using the Forum - you have the 5 posts necessary to do that. From the "Quick Reply" dialog box, click the Go Advanced button. Then scroll down to Manage Attachments. You will get a pop-up menu where you can select the photo files, then Upload when you have them all selected.

[birdwomn]

Sorry about the photos. Here you go

[Roberta]

I think it just needs time to produce new growth. The shriveling of the pseudobulbs is pretty normal. Clearly it was grown in very bright light (the yellow-ish leaves) but if you give it a little more shade, that will protect it from dehydrating too much while it is working on new roots. Once you see new roots just starting (watch the newest growth) if you want to mount it in your tree, that would be the time to do it. (when the first little green root tips first appear, you want to catch them before they get long... it is impossible to not damage a few root tips in repotting, but if you catch it when it is just starting, there will be more emerging, so you want it in its new home so they can settle in and establish.