Two New Cattleya Blooms..
It’s official, we now have two new Cattleya blooms.. The two buds that we have been watching have opened, and they will be the final buds of this blooming season. And for those of you that are new and haven’t followed the last few posts, our Cattleya orchid has produced three flowers this year. These types of orchids only bloom on newer pseudobulbs (Cane like growth with a single leaf at the top). There are no other pseudobulbs newer than these two, so we will have no further flowers this year.
It doesn’t feel right inserting an apology here, but I did take more than a couple flower photos, so I guess I should.
It Was A Long Wait ..
But the flower buds finally opened .. Just a few days ago they opened up. I was unable to write about the event when it happened but I did take several pictures just after the flowers opened up. The strange thing is they are a slightly different color than the one that opened up prior. They are a deeper Crimson color, where the other flower is a bright red with slight yellowish tones in it. This may be simply due to the fact that the other flower is already starting to fade, and I just haven’t noticed the color progression. That is most likely the case. Given the simple fact that we have flowers to enjoy is enough for me that differentiation in color doesn’t matter so much.
The photo at the very top of the post is the Progression photo of the buds opening, incase you want to go back up and check that out.
Recap ..
I guess I’ll start out with a recap .. Our Cattleya orchid is a hybrid called ‘Jewel Box’. There are many different hybrids of this type of orchid, and they are readily available on the market. We picked this one up from a local orchid farm in Linwood New Jersey called Waldor Orchids. It’s a neat little farm that we stumbled across in our journeys, and one probably wouldn’t know it was there unless someone had pointed it out. We have made several trips to browse the orchids over the years, and have even brought friends and family along for the experience. We are due back for a visit any day now.
Waldor Orchids
Back To Our Little Cattleya Orchid ..
The Cattleya orchid is basically a rhizome .. And it grows like a rhizome would, because it is a rhizome (okay.. getting weird - I'll stop saying rhizome) .. which means that it has a distinct growing end. It WILL NOT grow in all directions, but only from one end of the plant; In a linear horizontal way, not upwards or vertical. It will grow a new pseudobulb (or possible more than one bulb), from one end of the plant. We look at the newest flowers and the pseudobulb in which they came from, and at the very base of that is where the next pseudobulb will originate from. It will occur just below the bark. Our Cattleya is a Unifoliate, meaning it has only one leaf per pseudobulb. Other types may have two leaves, but not this hybrid.
For some reason I can't seem to explain it right, so I drew a picture for reference...
I think it took less time to draw that depiction rather than typing it out.. lol.
At the very top of these pseudo bulbs, sit the leaf, and at the center base of the leaf forms, a flower sheath. A flower sheath is a leaf like appendage that protects newly forming flower buds. The flower bud or buds form overtime underneath the flower sheath, blooming once a season around this time of year. We got lucky this year and two of our pseudo bulbs produced buds. One of the pseudo bulbs produced a single flower, bud, and another two. These flowers should last three or four weeks before falling off, then we will have to wait till next year for new flowers. That is if the plant produces new pseudo bulbs in the meantime. I’m hoping she does!
I suppose I better wrap this up before it gets too long .. The only other thing I think is worth mentioning is that she may be out growing her small pot. At this point there is no room for it to grow other than outside of this small pot. I'll keep an eye out for a new pot with a little more room in it. The plant doesn't need much room, just enough for a few more pseudobulbs is all. When I do replant her, I will position the plant so that all of the additional space is at the growing end of the plant. Hope that makes sense. I will consider repotting this Cattleya after the blooms fall off. Not any sooner than that so I keep her stress to a minimum while blooming.
Enjoy The Additional Flower Photos!
Here are a few pictures of the older flower that opened just a few weeks ago. You can maybe see the difference in color.
Back To Her Resting Spot ..
After the photo session was over I placed the orchid back in her favorite spot, next to the sliding glass door that faces South. This seems to be the best spot for this type of orchid; a very warm and sunny spot. I’m glad I took this photo because you can see a pair of size 9 crocs that help give you an idea of how big this plant is. She is not very big, but she is very beautiful!
Thank you for swinging by my blog and checking out the post. Have a great day!
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