Two for one - sort of

[ALToronto]

I repotted some cattleya seedlings today, out of 2" sphagnum pots and into bigger and better things. In two cases, what I thought was a single plant turned out to be two. No, I did not break the rhizome - the plants fell apart as I was gently picking sphagnum strands out of their roots.

I can see how this can happen - tiny seedlings are picked out of their compot with tweezers and placed in the sphagnum pots, so it's easy to pick up a straggler. The problem is, the two plants in both cases were of radically different sizes and stages of development, even though they were exactly the same age, growing under the same conditions. One 'second' plant had 4 pb's, but less than half the size of its pot-mate. The other was extremely tiny, with only two pb's, while its mate is almost blooming size. All the plants were placed in their sphagnum pots in October 2010.

I put both underdeveloped catts in the smallest s/h pots I could find and gave them a good soaking in seaweed extract. What are the chances they'll grow, given their poor record so far?

[ALToronto]

Well, after repotting 26 seedlings, I can tell that the problem is more complex than I described above. Out of 26, I had 8 pots that turned into multiple plants, usually two. In some cases, the rhizome did, in fact, rot right through, leaving me with one survivable plant and one or two questionable ones (Love that sphagnum!).

However, in one case, I found a bifoliate and a unifoliate together - I had noticed the difference earlier, but I thought that maybe bifoliates started out with just 1 leaf for the first few growths and then put out 2 (I'm not an expert). But when the bare-root plant separated, it was clear that I had two different plants in my hands. I wonder which one the label belongs to!

And in yet another case, the catt came apart into 2 pieces, and there was a stray monopodial there as well! A tiny thing whose stem and 5 leaves would fit on a loonie (Canadian $1 coin), but with a couple of roots and therefore at least a fighting chance.

I'm really scratching my head here - these plants came from Cloud's, which has a stellar reputation. I bought them exactly one month ago. Even if the rotted rhizomes are my fault (I'm a compulsive mister), I'm baffled by the amount of rotted roots on some plants but not others, and by the careless housekeeping. I should add that most plants are in excellent condition, with lots of healthy, firm roots. But there were enough problems to give me cause for concern.

[escualida]

I too would think it's understandable to find two together because from deflasking I've had times when I wasn't sure if I was dealing with one plant or two that were stuck together and I didn't wan to pull too hard just in case.

But it IS really weird that they would be two different types of plants. I have no idea how that would happen. Maybe call Cloud's and see what they say?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

I highly doubt that they are two different types of seedlings. I think one was bigger than the other one. It is not uncommon to see uneven growth between different seedlings within the same flask. In fact, I see it quite often. Some seedlings are huge, some are medium sized, others are runts, yet others haven't even developed past the protocorm stages yet; and they're all in the same flask.

[ALToronto]

Well, the monopodial is clearly a stray. It could also be a single stem of a dendrobium. But if the rest are runts, does it mean they're doomed, or can they develop into healthy, normal plants? I have a few of them in one s/h compot.

Originally Posted by ALToronto

However, in one case, I found a bifoliate and a unifoliate together - I had noticed the difference earlier, but I thought that maybe bifoliates started out with just 1 leaf for the first few growths and then put out 2 (I'm not an expert). But when the bare-root plant separated, it was clear that I had two different plants in my hands. I wonder which one the label belongs to!

Quite often bifoliate plants can have pseudobulbs with one leaf. Here is my Cattleya tigrina, it is just one plant, notice three bulbs with just one leaf each:



I bought lots of catts from Clouds and had the cases with several plants in one pot, I took it as a bonus .

Also I wanted to add that I usually repot all catts right when I get them into clay pots with medium coconut husk chips and it helps a lot with questionable roots.

[ALToronto]

Yes, there were several plants that turned out to be equal, well developed twins. Those were definitely a nice surprise!

I should have repotted earlier, but with the holidays, some tasks got put off for a while. But now, with the healthy twins, I have an opportunity to compare s/h with coconut chips.

Originally Posted by ALToronto

Yes, there were several plants that turned out to be equal, well developed twins. Those were definitely a nice surprise!

I should have repotted earlier, but with the holidays, some tasks got put off for a while. But now, with the healthy twins, I have an opportunity to compare s/h with coconut chips.

Great! I always read about all the benefits of S/H but never dared to try it. Would be interesting to see your comparison results.