Cattleya species

[DrLeslieEe]

Although I post a lot of paph pics here, I am really a Cattleya connoisseur lol. I collect the rare varieties or forms of the unifoliates, particularly flameas and pelorics, or simply just with special traits. Some of you have seen the ones I bloomed recently. I will post some pics here that I have not shown on ST when I gather them together.

There are some confusion that surround certain species that tend to perpetuate through lack of proper updated information. What happens in North America is not what happens with the rest of the world sometimes. Through my travels of judging in US, Asia and South America, many myths surrounding these magnificent plants were completely busted for me.

For example:

1. the new quadricolors have many flat cultivars. We awarded a few in Bogota that could rival trianaes.
2. lawrenceana is readily available from South American vendors who regularly come to Redlands and Tamiami.
3. eldorados/wallisi is not a difficult species to grow under lights as long as they are watered properly and kept in the warmest part of the growing area (where phals grow, they thrive closer to the light).

The key to growing the right species is to determine if you have the right spot for it in your growing environment. There's the warm spot all year or that cool spot in winter. Place the plants accordingly. For me it could simply be a difference of one foot from the window separating the percivaliana from the eldorado (who is further in).

There are many fantastic cattleya growers on here, and I hope we can keep sharing and exchanging info within our ‘secret’ cattleya group hiding in a slipper forum lol.

 

[DrLeslieEe]

Here are some of my collectables . Some pics are original pics of the divisions that I bought. I leave you to guess what they are before I provide key to identities.


Warneri var flamea (large flamea)



Warneri semialba quasi-flamea (great blushing effects around the picotee areas)


Percivaliana pelorica (Japanese breeding by Wakayama with intense rubra color and bright pelorism, also normal wide lip)




Labiata semialba pincelada (line bred from semialba lines with great form in Brazil)




Violacea coerulea (one of the best forms with very flat lip and intense blue coloration)




Alaorii flamea (very full and flat petals)

 

[DrLeslieEe]

Few more:


Amethystoglossa albescent (rare color form with pink freckles)



Amethystoglossa aurea (the orange form with good shape)






Amethystoglossa 4n (tetraploid with big round petals)




Labiata semialba flamea 'Brennandianna' (a select from the collection of a private grower in Brazil who did a limited mericlone run of a hundred or so plants; this plant was supposedly collected from the jungle, and one of the plants I would test against the labiata standard)



Below is the labiata semialba pincelada from Europe.




Mendellii albescent 'Bucaramanga' (original jungle plant with huge flowers)




Labiata coerulea 'Blue Balls' (selected from line breeding with exceptional shape)




Bicolor coerulea (line bred with a different yellow petals and blue-ish lip).



Schilleriana albescent (good wide lip)

 

[DrLeslieEe]

And few more:


Trianae flamea 'Panda' (the flameas can be random on this plant, some with markings and others do not; shows the instability of this gene even within the same plant on the same flowering; also a Wakayama original)





Lueddemaniana semialba flamea




Mossiae semialba flamea (one of the best flameas of this species with huge flares on petals and sepals; probably my favorite plant)





Gaskelliana semialba pincelada



Eldorado (syn. wallisi) semialba flamea 'Golden Trumpet' AM/AOS (got this one awarded a few years ago, one of the treasures of my collection).

 

[Greenpaph]

Alaorii is one of my favorites!

 

[terryros]

There are a few I might guess at, but I realize that my knowledge of specific cultivars within various species is limited. Time for the key to the pictures! Also, along with out species testing topic in the other chain, do you have any doubts about the true origin of any of these (species versus some admixture)?

 

[monocotman]

Wow now you are just showing off! Those splash petals are something else.
The one with picotee sepals is amazing. Never seen anything like that!
David

 

[southernbelle]

Few more:

View attachment 26734View attachment 26735View attachment 26736View attachment 26737View attachment 26738View attachment 26739View attachment 26740View attachment 26742View attachment 26743

Bet you knew #4 in this group would steal my

 

[southernbelle]

I think I’m sort of the one who started this little sub group, inadvertently, asking if there was a good cattleya group anywhere. All the Cattleya groups I could find on the web were ones that did not offer any expertise, I’ll just put it that way. A lot of likes and Memes but not much else. Some nice person, here, suggested that there was some cattleya interest in this group, so I started posting. I have a few species and a few bifoliates, but primarily large flowered unifoliates and remakes of old hybrids with better parents from O. Ltd.
I grow indoors in a 9 x 12 grow room under LED-T5 tubes. My low temperature in the winter is about 61-65 at night and my high in the summer is 84. I can’t get lower than that, as there is no window in my room, so I’m at the mercy of my basement’s low night temperature. I have six tables of cattleya’s and two tables of paths. I also have a small collection of phrags (10 plants) I grow upstairs in my living room window, along with three phals.
The only two things I have not been able to bloom, so far, are warscewiczii (young plants, though) and a Paph. (micranthum x roth) ‘Gloria Naugle’.
I had to destroy about a third of my catts due to virus, but now the room is virus free as I’ve tested most of the paths and have found no virus, so I am assuming they will be fine.. My paths are all small so will be outgrowing their two tables pretty rapidly, and will occupy more of the other tables.
I really appreciate this group and the information/expertise here. Also the photos are just awesome!

Deborah

 

[BrucherT]

And few more:

View attachment 26744View attachment 26746View attachment 26748View attachment 26749View attachment 26750

How is that center flower so different on the first one in this group?

 

[DrLeslieEe]

There are a few I might guess at, but I realize that my knowledge of specific cultivars within various species is limited. Time for the key to the pictures! Also, along with out species testing topic in the other chain, do you have any doubts about the true origin of any of these (species versus some admixture)?

ID is now provided with each picture. Did you guess right?

Most of the species are 'procured' carefully with lots of research and required provenances. Most are obviously a species but of course mistakes can happen and doubt can occur when I bloom them a few years in a row. Some of these plants are in the 4 figure range so I buy them with as much care as I buy a car lol.

 

[DrLeslieEe]

How is that center flower so different on the first one in this group?

From the side, the center flower looks the same as the rest. The lip develops weirdly on eldorados on some bloomings.

Update:
Oops on rereading the thread, I realized you were asking about the trianae flamea ‘Panda’, which I explained in the key (description) of the unstable flamea gene of this Japanese breeding.

 

[DrLeslieEe]

Not the best picture, but Cattleya warneri coerulescens. Very unusual color from tropical orchid farm. Pretty much like a concolor , but the overall color is different than a tipo, but not exactly coerulea. Has the tiniest hint of yellow way back in the throat. View attachment 26685

I love warneris.

Could you take a pic of this flower next to a lavender cattleya so we can compare the colors? Or in sunlight? Coerulea and coerulescens have very defined parameters.

 

[DrLeslieEe]

I think I’m sort of the one who started this little sub group, inadvertently, asking if there was a good cattleya group anywhere. All the Cattleya groups I could find on the web were ones that did not offer any expertise, I’ll just put it that way. A lot of likes and Memes but not much else. Some nice person, here, suggested that there was some cattleya interest in this group, so I started posting. I have a few species and a few bifoliates, but primarily large flowered unifoliates and remakes of old hybrids with better parents from O. Ltd.
I grow indoors in a 9 x 12 grow room under LED-T5 tubes. My low temperature in the winter is about 61-65 at night and my high in the summer is 84. I can’t get lower than that, as there is no window in my room, so I’m at the mercy of my basement’s low night temperature. I have six tables of cattleya’s and two tables of paths. I also have a small collection of phrags (10 plants) I grow upstairs in my living room window, along with three phals.
The only two things I have not been able to bloom, so far, are warscewiczii (young plants, though) and a Paph. (micranthum x roth) ‘Gloria Naugle’.
I had to destroy about a third of my catts due to virus, but now the room is virus free as I’ve tested most of the paths and have found no virus, so I am assuming they will be fine.. My paths are all small so will be outgrowing their two tables pretty rapidly, and will occupy more of the other tables.
I really appreciate this group and the information/expertise here. Also the photos are just awesome!

Deborah

You will outgrow this room Deborah!!

If there Is no access to the outside to channel cold air in during winter, you can still grow majority of the large unifoliates. Only the Mexican laelias may require the chill and dryness.

Or you will need ANOTHER room with window access lol.

 

[My Green Pets]

Got to plug my rexes here! My first two to bloom were crossed and Meyers is making flasks, I believe they are still taking reservations if anyone wants one! They are just lovely. Like lots of water during the growing season, but be extra careful not to rot them in the dry season.

 

[DrLeslieEe]

Great one Fuzzy Bud! Love to hear you grow them well. I have no experience in them as the flamea rexes I’m trying to get eludes me.

Please post a general guide to them? Normal catt summer but dryer cooler winters with bright light all year?

 

[My Green Pets]

This is just about everything I know!

 

[DrLeslieEe]

This is just about everything I know!

Great video! Thanks for the cultural recommendations William!! So helpful.

I think you also have a post here of your rex seedling journey?

 

[southernbelle]

You will outgrow this room Deborah!!

If there Is no access to the outside to channel cold air in during winter, you can still grow majority of the large unifoliates. Only the Mexican laelias may require the chill and dryness.

Or you will need ANOTHER room with window access lol.

I just about had outgrown it, until I had to destroy virused plants. Right now this space is about my max, time and energy wise. Trying too have fewer, but more special things. Nothing anywhere near 4 figures, though.

 

[geoffsharris]

I love warneris.

Could you take a pic of this flower next to a lavender cattleya so we can compare the colors? Or in sunlight? Coerulea and coerulescens have very defined parameters.

I'll wait until one of the tipos is in bloom and do a side by side.