First Cattleya, does it look okay?

[alpha_betta]

I can't believe I found this guy at Lows! I told myself I would not buy another orchid unless it was a Cattleya, and because winter is around the corner I was thinking I would have to wait till mid May to order one but I decided to stop by the house plants isle at Lows and found Cattleyas! Little ones and big ones... I got a big one because I liked the colors advertised on the tag (they were not in bloom).

Anyway, I had troubles seeing the quality of the plant because of a white mesh that was wrapped around the plant but I thought it looked good so I picked it up. When I got home I found black marks on the leaves and one on the sudobulb.

I have included some pictures below.

The tag on the mesh said for best results to plant into a 5"-6" pot, but is that too big? It is in a 3" pot now, should I go ahead and put it in a larger 6" pot or just pot it in the next step up?

Also, is there a best time to repot Cattleyas? I think it desperately needs a repot, the stake id tag has a date on it, 9/4/08, which I would assume is the repot date??

I think the luckiest part about this plant is the fact that it has an ID!

BLC. Sharon King "Yuki" Red

My first non-NoID

[Bud]

Thats a nice one you got. It is blooming size. I suggest you repot after it blooms on you. I dont see any roots trying to escape the pot...orchids like to be enclosed in a pot...not too tight not too loose...yours is just right at the moment...let it aclimatize to your room and environment...let it get used to your watering regimen and fertilizer...you positioned it on the window to get bright but not direct sun...dont worry about the black sun spots...or the mechanical damages on the plant; overall I see a healthy plant...trust your instincts...you picked the right plant after all...

[Zoi2]

It does look like a pretty nice plant considering it is a Lowe's bag baby. My Lowe's usually doesn't have healthy looking plants. I would repot into fresh media and make sure everything is OK with the roots. I found a picture of the bloom.....it's beautiful! Cattleya Photo Gallery/Blc. Sharon King 'Yuki'
Joann