Need info / help caring for my C. Warscewiczii

[jludlow]

A few years back I bought 2 very young plants and they have failed to thrive - I get new leaves, but they're all small and this repeats time after time - never growing to anywhere near full size. (My other cattleyas are all thriving.) After some research, I just moved them from the greenhouse in to the house and put them under a plant light to give them longer and more direct "sun" light than they were getting. That and I've starting using a spray bottle to water and making absolutely sure that they completely dry out between waterings. What do you do to care for your C. Warsc. to have such wonderful success? Any suggestions or thoughts? Your flowers are phenomenal - and not just the C. Warsc. Help! And thank you.

[RosieC]

I'm afraid I can't help with this, but I've split it into it's own thread as I think it was getting lost at the end of Mauro's 2007 thread.

Hope someone can help you.

---------- Post added at 10:27 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:25 AM ----------

Also should have said... welcome to Orchid Board

[jludlow]

Thanks - will have to take some time to learn the best ways to post etc. Appreciate your help.

[isurus79]

Any pics??

[Bud]

Placement: In order to get a really powerful flower spike, you should get your Cattleya warscewiczii growing as early as possible after its rest, ideally in late January or early February. Provide the plant with full sun. When the growing point breaks and starts to grow, you should continue to provide it with as much sun as it can handle without being burned. Sufficient air movement around the orchid is very important to prevent the leaves from overheating. If the leaves feel warm when you touch them, you must provide your orchid with enough shade to save them from sun burn.

Flowers: As mentioned above, Cattleya warscewiczii is famous for its huge flowers. The flower colour is a purplish pink shade, the lip is deep purple, and there is a bright yellow centre. The flowers are fragrant.

There exist three main types of Cattleya warscewiczii. In the first group, you can for instance find the forms Cattleya warscewiczii ‘Firmin Lambeau’, ‘F.M.B.’, and “Imperialis”. Members of this group blossoms from late June to early July, at least in the northern hemisphere. The second group blossoms from late July to early August, and includes forms such as “Sanderiana”. The third group is very rare and is not commonly cultivated nowadays. These orchids can produce up to 12 flowers for each spike, but the flowers are comparatively small and the group is therefore not very popular.

Watering: After the resting period, you should start giving your Cattleya warscewiczii as early as possible in late January or early February. While providing it with full sun you should spray it light. When the growing points breaks and starts to grow, you should still continue with the sprayings. If you give the plant too much water you can harm the flower production. Do not give the orchid a lot of water until the new growth is at least 4 inches (over 10 cm). The amount of water should then be gradually increased. It is also very important to make sure that it dries out thoroughly between each watering.

Rest: It is important to give your Cattleya warscewiczii a resting period. Really strong plants might be able to produce new growth right after flowering, but the safest thing to do is to let the orchid have a resting period after blooming.

General: As the buds emerge from the sheath of your Cattleya warscewiczii, it is important to check the leaves regularly and make sure that they are not getting too hot in the sun. Proper air circulation is very important to remove heat. Too much heat can make the spike curve over. It will still flower, but the flowers will be placed horizontally and most growers prefer the vertical formation.

[silken]

According to the Charles Baker culture sheet for this species, they need a fairly large diurnal range of about 20 degrees. They need 3500 to 4000fc of light. There are 2 dry (but not cooler) rest periods and they suspect flowering doesn't happen if they are grown in continuous 16 hr day environment. So you would need to shorten your day length during winter to simulate it and give them a bit dryer condition as well. It might be worth going to the Baker Culture sheets Culture On Demand - Orchid Species Culture Sheets and paying the $10.00 which gets you culture info on 3 separate orchids. There are some free ones, but unfortunately this one is not free.

[jludlow]

I don't want you to think I've been ignoring your question about pics. I've been having a problem with getting the pics I've taken to upload - still working on it. It seems to be the camera but still digging in to it.

[jludlow]

Okay - I think I managed to upload the pic. As you can see (hopefully), its not getting it to bloom that's the issue - it's getting it to grow / thrive. I have 2 other C. Warsc that have just begun to thrive - they are the species type (think that's how to say it). The one that hasn't started to thrive is a C. Warsc. semi-alba. While I thought that shouldn't matter, it's the only difference I can find. They were all purchased summer 2009 as small plants. They all get a diurnal range of 15 degrees give or take. So I'm going with the "not enough sunlight" idea and have moved it to a sunnier location in the greenhouse and will keep an eye on it - it might have been getting too much shade. Also, I grow all my orchids in expanded clay pellets (also called hydroton or others brand names). I'm going to check the Baker Culture Sheets and see if their page provides anything new - it'll be worth the $10 if I can finally get these to truly thrive.

[isurus79]

Are you growing in semi-hydroponics or just using the hydroton as media?

[jludlow]

Using it as media. Wasn't successful with traditional media in my early days. I've learned to add Carbo-Load for the carbohydrates they all need. Once I did that, they all started to take off - except the semi-alba.