CATTLEYAS
NUMBER 3 IN THE ORCHID SERIES IS THE CATTLEYA
At the beginning of 2016 we repotted quite a few of these plants. Hopefully we will be getting more flowers in 2017.
These orchids are the most sumptuous and exotic of all and are commonly chosen for corsages for weddings and special occasions.
In nature there are about 50 species each of Cattleyas and of Laelias from countries such as Central America, growing through the Amazon region to the south of Brazil.
These plants produce strong 'pseudo bulbs' topped with one or more leathery leaves.
Each year a dormant bud at the base grows into a new shoot. This thickens to produce the current year's pseudo bulb.
The flowers arise from the axil of the current year's leaf where a protective sheath usually develops, and they come in a range of colours from white and pink to green and purple, depending on the parentage and genera. Some flower twice yearly.
Like most other cultivated orchids, cattleyas are epiphytes, orairplants. They have well developed water-storage organs (called pseudo-bulbs) and large fleshy roots. They should be potted in a porous, free-draining medium. The most commonly used are fir bark, shredded tree-fern fiber, various types of rock, processed coconut fiber and, lately, mixes based on peat moss / and perlite. Keep out of cold, dry air while in bloom.