Mini catt species?
 

I'm looking for a mini catts, but I'm confused by all the re-classifications and was hoping someone could recommend some mini catts, specifically species.

My impression is that some species that were formerly Sophronitis are now the parents of many mini Catt hybrids and maybe there are also some former Laelia species that are considered mini...???

Planning to buy from Peter T. Lin, who is a mini catt specialist; i just am a bit overwhelmed by the list on his website!

Thanks in advance!

TOA - you can take a look at this link here, and there will be some species names in there.

Click Here

The lumping of Sophronitis into Cattleya messed up a lot of things... genus names, and also the ability to easily identify those. Yes, also bunch (most) of what used to be called "Laelia" - all the Brazillians - also got lumped. I took a look at the Diamond Orchids list, and it looks like Peter has kept the old genus names, (and indicates size... the only Laelia that isn't mini or dwarf is L. purpurata... but we knew that...) And there are several Sophronitis species (S. coccinea and two different S. cernuas). You can also send him an email for recommendations.

TOA ----- for species, one well known one is C. aclandiae

One very nice mini catt hybrid is C. Mini Purple ...... each grower looks for particular looks or styles. Some look for everything hehe ..... just depends on what the growers are looking for.

I'd hardly call C. aclandiae a mini... not compared to Sophronitis or the Hadrolaelias or the rupiculous Laelias. Take a look at the Diamond Orchids list. Dwarf and Minis are identified.

Roberta ----- it's all relative. It depends on how 'mini' is 'mini' heheh. Even a micro could be called a mini ------ maybe.

TOA - if you can find any Rth. Dal's Emperor (eg. from SVO -- eg. Pot. Dal's Emperor 'SVO') ------ could take a look at those too.

How small do you want your Cattleyas? Do you prefer fragrance?

Some smaller ones that are fragrant are: pumilia, aclandiae, sincora, luteola, walkeriana. These are not tiny but they do stay small. I tend to look for hybrids with these in the mix as I like the small but fragrant Cattleyas. Currently, my only species is the aclandiae.

If you want to go really small, Soph. cernua, Laelia liliputana are two of the smallest. Neither are fragrant. The Laelia and Soph. groups have many really small family members but I am not very familiar with these groups as I like orchids that bloom more than once a year with fragrant blooms.

Thank you, will definitely check this out!

---------- Post added at 05:25 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:23 PM ----------

Oh oops, guess I was so overwhelmed that I failed to even read the list properly!! I will revisit it. Appreciate the advice; I'm completely new to catts!

---------- Post added at 05:32 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:25 PM ----------

Thanks for this. Yes, really small is the name of the game. My orchid grow space is effectively one wire shelving unit so I have to make every inch count! Interesting about fragrance; I will look into the others you mentioned as well!

Just for the record... my S. coccinea blooms twice a year or thereabouts. No fragrance, but the color... Oh baby...

I came across a nice little article on the history of mini catts

Amazing Minicatts

I found it interesting. I haven't seen most of the crosses mentioned before and the numbers really reflect a shift from Big flowers being popular in the 50s to more compact plants later on.

the lc clive sounds like a nice hybrid I'd never heard of before, probably lost to time by now

Wow, thanks so much! Excited to check it out.

Those are some classics. A big driver for breeding minicatts (and smaller) was the fact that LOTS of people who want to grow orchids don't have much space and also need plants that aren't fussy about temperature or even light. You can fit these on a windowsill. And many of them also bloom more than once a year. What's not to love?

If you like purple colours ------- maybe could try a C. Mini Purple. With this sort of mini catt, I managed over some time to end up with three cultivars of it ...... 'Tracy', 'Tamami', and 'Orchid Centre'. These are hybrids. Fantastic work by those people that provided us with these cultivars, and all the other ones! Will share pics on their next flowering(s)!

Just a quick update: I had a gift certificate for Andy's and when I called to order a Sophronitis pygmea, Andy suggested Sophronitis cernua because it is a warm grower. Someday I hope to have a cool growing terrarium, but in the meantime, I am looking forward to getting acquainted with my first Catt!

I just entered those words from your post to take a look at the flowers from that kind of orchid. Wonderful! Orange colours. I haven't got any orange coloured flower orchids yet. One day I will look for an orange flower one! Nice recommendation from Andy.

S. cernua is a delightful species (a couple of examples on my website). The purple pollinia are a bonus, nice contrast. I get away with growing it outside, but compared to other Sophronitis it's marginal... Andy is right, it is happier a bit warmer. (I think I have one in bud, but never sure until they actually emerge from the new leaf.. this group doesn't have a noticeable sheath so the buds hide until the new growth is developed and the leaf opens... any minute now...

Ron Midgett (author of the article) is still active, visit New Earth Orchids to see his plants. Most of his breeding tends to be compact rather than miniature though.

Shout out to Fred Clark,Sunset Valley Orchids, breeder of minis and compacts. I have 3 in bloom right now and several more in bud. At this point, the bulk of my collection is Sunset Valley plants, I have found them to be very reliable and rewarding for new growers.

Here's a youtube video I found a moment ago on mini-catts.

2016 - Peter T. Lin (Mini Catt Species & Hybrids) 6th Annual Cattleya Symposium - YouTube