Catasetum and Vanda awards at Fairchild Gardens 2023 Florida Caribbean Judging Centre (A Sneak Peek)

[DrLeslieEe]

I attended an additional judging at the Fairchild Gardens for the FCJC two days after Redlands judging. These two beautiful Catasetums were awarded AM and CCM and a Vanda intergeneric an AM.

Catasetum AA Orquideas ‘Eduardo Perez’ AM 81 points. Very dark burgundy, with the same approaching the large lip of the The Millennium Witchcraft (9 cm NS with 6 cm wide lip).


Clo. Mark Margolis ‘Nicola’ CCM 82: Had 41 pristine lime green flowers on 2 inflorescence, like a wedding bouquet.


Vanda (Pda) Madame Mimi ‘Julie Villarreal’ AM 85: chestnut barring on old gold base.

 

[NYEric]

Nice. Thanks for sharing.

 

[big923cattleya]

Oh boy, I really enjoyed all three of those!!
Madame Mini is very special, simply gorgeous color. Thank you so much for sharing those images.

 

[Ozpaph]

a cultural certificate with 2 spikes???

 

[big923cattleya]

Not terribly sure what your question is about. Do you think that with 41 flowers on 2 inflorescences, it doesn't deserve a cultural award? Or are you asking why it did not score higher then 82 points?
Research shows at least 14 awards to the grex Clowesia Mark Margolis. 13 are flower quality awards, one 83 point cultural award. That plant had 89 flowers on 4 inflorescences or 22.25 on each spike. This plant that you are asking about compares favorably with 41 flowers on two inflorescences 0r 20.5 per. Clowesias often display their blossoms on somewhat crowded inflorescences.
Now with only one previous cultural award on the record, that is what the judging team looks at first. The team thought that this plant compared favorably to it. The last thing I want to mention is that a cultural award goes really to the grower. Much like a "pat on the back" for doing such a good job. That award should stay with that plant forever as a sign that it is capable of producing a nice amount of flowers. I would have considered it myself.
It might be a different story if there were 8-12 other cultural awards with more flowers, but there are not many. And even if there were more cultural awards, many with more flowers, I would still consider a cultural award to this plant. Why would I do that? Because it goes to the grower, not the plant like an AM. I am recognizing the good job that they did getting this to bloom like it did.

 

[paphlove]

I love the catasetum! I would like to give them a try one day.
Thanks for sharing!

 

[Ndove]

I love the catasetum! I would like to give them a try one day.
Thanks for sharing!

I have 3 of them and they are wonderful plants. Very vigorous

 

[Ozpaph]

2 spikes with 40 flowers is not 'culturally outstanding' regardless of what was awarded perviously 'in that grex', IMHO.

 

[big923cattleya]

Oh really.
Well when you train and become a judge, we can talk again.

 

[DrLeslieEe]

I think there’s a misunderstanding here.

The cultural award was CCM of 82 points on one flowering growth with two inflorescences, on a 4-5 growth plant. The arrangement was an impressive bouquet.

This means that if it had double or triple the number of flowers on 2-3 flowering growths (on a larger plant) it may get 92 points CCE (cultural excellence).

This means that there was a leeway given to better blooming with more flowers.

 

[big923cattleya]

A misunderstanding? Okay. I misunderstood someone saying that “two spikes with 40 flowers is not culturally outstanding” regardless of what was previously awarded.

I think that I will just step away. That is just a bit too much for me to comprehend.
Good fortune all and happy growing!

 

[DrLeslieEe]

A misunderstanding? Okay. I misunderstood someone saying that “two spikes with 40 flowers is not culturally outstanding” regardless of what was previously awarded.

I think that I will just step away. That is just a bit too much for me to comprehend.
Good fortune all and happy growing!

Everyone has a difference standard based on each grower, region and experiences. Their opinions may not be in congruent to the various judging systems, but it’s ok to be heard.

 

[big923cattleya]

Well that is fine.
TMPH