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  #11  
Old 10-13-2018, 10:16 PM
TomThumb TomThumb is offline
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Dark spots on leaves of plant beginning dormancy normal? Female
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Originally Posted by Roberta View Post
I think your vendor needs to refine instructions a bit... these Catasetinae really are quite different than Cattleyas. Temperature and light may be similar, but while in active growth Catasetinae want to be quite wet (unlike Catts that need to dry out between waterings) and they have a dormancy period that is really pronounced that needs to be respected. (Don't be in a rush to resume watering... seems cruel to hold back when they are starting to have leaves and roots, but that's what they need) That dormancy period is quite handy, however, when you have to deal with winter and share living space or precious greenhouse space with them... with no leaves they take up very little room, and can be (need to be) totally ignored. When they are in active growth and those leaves get big and spread out, they can go outside (once nights are above about 55 deg F or so)
Aaaaah the vendor specifically said they needed to dry out a bit between watering which was why i was worried when i saw it was so wet that it was soaking through the paper wrapping after 3 days? in transport. I will remember your advice. I had no idea this little guy was supposed to be kept moist and i will remember not to rush to water when he starts coming around again. I do have a nice big backyard and i intend to take some of my hardier orchids out eventually. (the thought is kind of scary though because i know i have raccoons out there.)

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Originally Posted by King_of_orchid_growing:) View Post
The potential setback is not a big deal. You'll still see flowers sooner or later. Unless there were lots of living roots that were severely damaged, removing dead roots won't do irreparable harm.

While it is true that it is far easier and far safer to remove Catasetinae from their pots during dormancy, it is fine to knock it out of the pot to see if any damage had been done to the root system at pretty much any time during the year provided that the living roots remain largely intact.

If there were lots of living roots damaged, then it will definitely set the plant back in blooming cycle by around 1 - 2 years and could potentially stunt the growth of the still developing pseudobulbs. Worst case scenario is that the plant dies, (it's not likely unless something goes horribly wrong).

For this particular plant, I wouldn't go 6" - 7" for a pot size. 4" - 5" is still just fine for it. Remember that the roots will eventually, (and naturally), die back anyways. There is currently no need to increase the pot size until the plant has put on far more growth than it currently has.

---------- Post added at 02:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:45 PM ----------

Yeah, I don't agree with your vendor about growing like a Cattleya either. These are vastly different in habit compared to Cattleyas.

It is correct, during active growth, they require a good amount of moisture, (not sopping wet though).

During dormancy, it is a hard dormancy where water is greatly reduced.

If I'm not mistaken, some of these guys can take it down to anywhere around 50 F - 55 F during the winter. I have a Catasetum schmidtianum that I had growing outdoors all year round here in SoCal. The plant tolerated this treatment ok, the flower spike didn't. Once it spikes, the safe low end temperature is closer to 60 F.


Btw, start reducing the water slowly right now. It is approaching dormancy.

I'm perfectly fine without the flowers. I think the plant itself is quite handsome with his bulby stem and fan of leaves. I'm in NY so there's no way these orchids would survive a snow storm. We do get some pretty hot summers though I'm unsure about the humidity. I will of course keep an eye on it when i set my orchids out in the summer. This monierara was sopping wet out of the package. I was surprised as in my previous two shipments of orchids (vandas in one and phals in another) all the plants were dry.


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Originally Posted by Roberta View Post
I use 55 deg F as sort of the cutoff point. It can get a lot cooler than that where I live (occasionally as low as the mid 30's F, much of the winter into the 40's F ) I think The King is more inland, where it's a little less temperate. So in another month or so I'll be cramming them into the greenhouse since many will still have leaves, but those will be lost shortly thereafter. Some don't even spike until they have lost leaves. I use sphagnum for the smaller ones (as does Fred Clarke), when they get big enough to need a 5 inch pot I'll switch to small bark because I don't want a soggy, airless lump in the middle of the pot. I also agree with The King, to not be too quick to go to bigger pots - they are quite happy to be pot-bound, and older roots do die so the root mass doesn't get as big as one would think - and smaller pots again avoid the problem of a wet, airless area in the middle. In general, orchids like "tight shoes".
In NY it can get down to 10 Fahrenheit lol. I have a big apartment (for NY) so they have room and i have windows on three sides, (S,W,E) but i have to supplement with artificial light anyway because i have some buildings around me. I will see how well these orchids do with me under the combination of natural and artificial light. I do have space to build a terrarium so I am considering this and how.

---------- Post added at 09:16 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:14 PM ----------

I also wanted to thank you guys for so much info. I really like this plant a lot but i couldn't really figure out how to care for it since i'm not familiar with different types of orchids and wasn't sure which one this looked the most like. I had seem similar structures but forgot what they were called.
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  #12  
Old 10-14-2018, 12:43 AM
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I have raccoons too. Mostly they don't bother the orchids except to knock pots over when they run (probably when they are startled) but every once in awhile they'll trash something. I have one major raccoon magnet though... I created a little fountain to provide moving water for Disas and Phrag besseae. After having things dumped several times, I think I have raccoon-proofed it. I built an enclosure (with top) out of plastic lattice and egg-crate light diffuser (1/4 inch holes, so there is still light and air circulation) Then I attached a bunch of bird spikes (from Home Depot) at strategic spots to make a fairly impenetrable barrier (it looks like a porcupine...) but they haven't managed to dump it in about two years. I also use the bird spikes on the bottom of the bird bath (pointed downward) because raccoon was dumping that too, and solved the problem. So pointy things do work to discourage wildlife. Not pretty,, but effective.
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  #13  
Old 10-14-2018, 03:30 PM
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I will reiterate what Roberta said about going to Sunset Valley Orchids to read the cultural information on Catasetinae. I suggest you reread it every change of season, and every time the orchid does something different, until you have it memorized. They require very different care from most orchids. If you put your name on Fred Clarke's mailing list you will get periodic newsletters telling you what to do at the current time of year.

Many people need to place their Catasetums in a dish with standing water during the growing season, or they are unable to water enough. They use so much water that many people need to refill this dish every day.
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Old 10-14-2018, 03:36 PM
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I have the page saved already! I am also considering getting another monnierara to go with this one and I can take care ofthem together. This one actually has an infestation of some sort of bug. Most likely spider mites as the underside of the leaves are covered in tiny bumps. I have it hanging in a separate room so i don't infect my other plants.

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Originally Posted by estación seca View Post
I will reiterate what Roberta said about going to Sunset Valley Orchids to read the cultural information on Catasetinae. I suggest you reread it every change of season, and every time the orchid does something different, until you have it memorized. They require very different care from most orchids. If you put your name on Fred Clarke's mailing list you will get periodic newsletters telling you what to do at the current time of year.

Many people need to place their Catasetums in a dish with standing water during the growing season, or they are unable to water enough. They use so much water that many people need to refill this dish every day.
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Old 10-14-2018, 03:45 PM
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Catasetinae are extremely susceptible to spider mites. I use 70% alcohol spray (rubbing alcohol) on every surface of all leaves, every 2 weeks or so as a preventive. I use it if I find mites on the leaves. Look up spider mites here on Orchid Board in the Pests and Diseases forum.
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Old 10-14-2018, 04:07 PM
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I have the page saved already! I am also considering getting another monnierara to go with this one and I can take care ofthem together.
Consider some of the other Catasetinae as well - wonderful colors and patterns. Catasetum, Mormodes, Clowesia and combinations thereof. (Monnierara is one of the complex hybrid genera, Fredclarkeara is another) The Sunset Valley Orchids website has lots of photos, you can see what I mean. (It's also a great source for them... Fred Clarke has been doing a lot of hybridizing with this group. The dormant period is a good time for shipping, since the plants don't mind being unwatered in the dark and packages are small)
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Old 10-14-2018, 05:27 PM
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Originally Posted by estación seca View Post
Catasetinae are extremely susceptible to spider mites. I use 70% alcohol spray (rubbing alcohol) on every surface of all leaves, every 2 weeks or so as a preventive. I use it if I find mites on the leaves. Look up spider mites here on Orchid Board in the Pests and Diseases forum.
That's good to know that they are susceptible! I wiped the leaves down the moment i saw the bumps and as a precaution wiped all my other plants. I know one of my vanda seedlings has the same bite marks so I've already wiped them all about a week ago but no harm in being careful.

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Originally Posted by Roberta View Post
Consider some of the other Catasetinae as well - wonderful colors and patterns. Catasetum, Mormodes, Clowesia and combinations thereof. (Monnierara is one of the complex hybrid genera, Fredclarkeara is another) The Sunset Valley Orchids website has lots of photos, you can see what I mean. (It's also a great source for them... Fred Clarke has been doing a lot of hybridizing with this group. The dormant period is a good time for shipping, since the plants don't mind being unwatered in the dark and packages are small)
Lol. No need to tell me. I keep looking at orchids online and browsing other orchids with big fat pseudobulbs. I'm considering a clowesia. The other monnierara i want is a lovely peachy color so i think they'll complement each other well.
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  #18  
Old 10-14-2018, 09:20 PM
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Clowesia is particularly neat... mine (Cl. Rebecca Northen 'Grapefruit Pink') blooms in about February, on completely leafless pseudobulbs. Then a couple of months later (long after flowers are gone) is when it starts growing leaves.
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