Related articles

• C. percivaliana in Bloom!! (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Cattleya skinneri in my Greenhouse (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Cattleya percivaliana in my Greenhouse (cattleyaorchids.net)
• My First Mounted Orchids (cattleyaorchids.net)

Considered a dwarf, C. aclandiae needs very specific culture requirements. Besides other things, its roots must be able to dry quickly after watering. That is why most people grow it either on a mount or in porous baskets. I made the mistake of planting the orchid in a pot and even though I was using extremely porous medium, I was not sure if the roots were drying quickly enough. I had also divided the plant before repotting.

Here is some specific information about C. aclandiae culture:

Bloom Season: Spring, Summer

Growing Temperature: Intermediate,Warm, Hot. In its native environment, summer days average 82-84 F (28-29 C), and nights average 71-72 F (22 C), with a diurnal range of 11-12 F (6-7 C). Winter days in its habitat average 77-79 F (25-26 C), and nights average 64-65 F (17-19 C), with a diurnal range of 9-11 F (5-6 C).

Growing Information: Cattleya aclandiae is a compact member of the Cattleya family and is well-suited for growers who have a limited amount of space to allocate towards their hobby. For best flowering, provide a dry winter rest period. Begin watering heavily when new growth appears. Flowers will develop on the new growth and bloom in the late spring or early summer.

Light: Provide bright light (4000-4500 fc. or 70 percent of full sun), brighter than most species of Cattleya. Plants can be hung up higher, close to the glass, to give them the maximum amount of light possible without damaging the foliage. Provide strong air circulation to help cool the foliage and prevent leaf burn and help plants dry out after watering. Light and growing conditions influence ultimate size of the plant.

Humidity: Provide 80-85 percent humidity for most of the year. Its acceptable for summer humidity to drop into the 75-80 percent range.

Water: Cattleya aclandiae should be watered regularly throughout the year, but they must dry rapidly after watering. Make sure that the plants never stay dry for long periods of time, however. Give mounted plants a daily misting in summer with a thorough soaking of the entire plant and slab twice a week in summer, or three times a week in extremely hot weather (adjust for your climate). Water should be reduced somewhat in winter, but plants should never stay dry for long periods.

Growing Media: Cattleya aclandiae is frequently grown mounted on cork slabs or in baskets, but some growers report success using pots with extremely open fast draining medium such as coarse bark nuggets. Whatever the choice of medium, it is critically important that the roots dry rapidly after watering or root rot is a near certainty. Use very small slabs for mounting this species because larger slabs retain to much water. Tree-fern slabs hold more water and should only be used only in very dry growing conditions. When mounting, do not use sphagnum moss between the mount and the plant because it retains too much moisture and promotes rot. Divide, repot, or remount only when new root growth is just starting. This lets the plant become established in the shortest possible time with the greatest success. (Source)

So, today I decided to mount the plants.

Obviously, I did my research and finally settled on the simplest method of mounting the plant. Most growers recommend cork bark as the ideal mounting medium, but since none of my local stores sell cork bark, I decided to go looking for suitable pieces of wood in my backyard (our backyard is about eight acres of wooded area). I finally found three perfect pieces of Cedar that came from a dead tree that had been cut recently.

I boiled these pieces, soaked them in bleach solution and then, as an added measure, sprayed them with Physan 20.

I took out the plants from the pots, disinfected them and trimmed the decayed roots. Then I drilled holes in the wood, to run my plastic wire through, and mounted the plants using pretty much all locally “found” materials.

As an extra I also mounted a division of C. Lawrenceana that had been growing in a two-inch pot. The plants are now happily hanging in the greenhouse and I admit this project has given me a lot of pleasure. I will, of course, report the progress of these plants as they grow.

Related articles

• My First Orchid Society Meeting (cattleyaorchids.net)
• On Orchid Obsession (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Physan 20, Cinnamon Powder, and Hydrogen Peroxide (cattleyaorchids.net)

Anyway, my point is that even though not all orchid growers are sociopaths–actually most of them are very nice–they do become obsessed with their orchids. I am a case in point. A few months ago I knew nothing about orchids, but now I am an ardent, and deeply obsessed, orchid grower. I think part of this obsessions stems from the challenge that orchids offer and the rewards that one hopes for.

After all, this is what those of us who are possessed do: nourish a few plants all through the year, give them the perfect conditions, and then hope to see them blossom. Yes, the process is so interestingly challenging that you tend to notice each new growth, each new root: it is like watching a child grow.

So yes, this obsession does exist and the orchids do take over your life, but then, I say to myself, as obsessions go this is not really all that bad. I mean if I am successful, I’ll have some beautiful flowers and if all my attempts fail then all that I have to be responsible for is a few dead flowers: beats being a gun collector any day.

Here are some of the new habits that I have noticed since I started growing orchids:

• When at home, I often go and check on the greenhouse to make sure that temperature is right but mostly just to see the plants.
• When away from home, I am always eager to get home to make sure that all is well with the plants.
• I am more aware of the weather as it can have a direct impact on my orchids.
• I am constantly scouring Ebay to find yet another orchid for my collection.

I know this sounds rather odd, but I am grateful that I have gotten into orchids. Until now, I have mostly been focused on my scholarship and teaching. the orchids give me a different kind of creative activity: an activity that involves knowledge about the culture of plants but is also rewarding in an immediate palpable way. Nothing, after all, can be as rewarding than writing a book, which I have done, or growing an orchid to its blooming size.

So, yes am I obsessed with my orchids: absolutely.

Am I worried?

Well, not yet!

Related articles

• The Beginning: The First Five Orchids (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Longwood Gardens Orchid Show: Mother Approved (erbology.com)
• Orchids: To Buy or Not to Buy on Ebay (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Search for Cattleya eldorado (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Physan 20, Cinnamon Powder, and Hydrogen Peroxide (cattleyaorchids.net)
• My First Orchid Society Meeting (cattleyaorchids.net)

Image via Wikipedia

Today I attended my first meeting as a member of Greater North Texas Orchid society. This meeting, for me, has opened a whole new exciting activity that I will be looking forward to every month. Most of the times the meetings that I attend or am invited to are academic and scholarly in nature, which, of course, I find exciting. This meeting was more social but also had a lot to offer in terms of learning the basic and some deeply sophisticated information about orchids and orchid culture. There was a fascinating lecture about hybridization by Paul Storm of Meke Aloha Orchids from Florida.

The GNTOS meets every frist Sunday of the month at North Haven Gardens. Thus, one only does not go to the meeting but can also stroll around the nursery grounds and see their ample offerings in flowers and plants. The meeting itself was fascinating: the judging table had some stunning orchids in bloom and the judges awarded the plants that were categorized according to genus alliances. I was glad to know that the Cattleya hybrid that I liked won the first prize in the Cattleya alliance. I cannot recall the exact name of it, but it was a larger bifoliate alba hybrid and had seven flower spikes.

The meeting also had a raffle table with about fifteen orchids in bloom and toward the end a gentleman also brought some plants for sale that were nicely priced. All proceeds went to the society. And even though my primary focus is only on seventeen large flower Cattleyas, I could not resist walking out with a nicely priced Cattleya cclandiae: C. aclandiae ‘California’ x ‘Black Rook’.

According to Cattleya source, C. aclandiae has the following general and culture requirements:

Common Name: Lady Ackland’s Cattleya

Habitat: Brazil. Cattleya aclandiae is native to the Brazilian state of Bahia. The relatively small habitat of Cattleya aclandiae starts southwest of Salvador and extends northeastward. The greatest concentrations occur on the elevated plateau bordering the drainage valleys of the Paraguacu River. Cattleya aclandiae is found growing in dry areas along the coast between 100 meters and 400 meters in elevation in areas exposed to a sea breeze up to 100 km inland. They are found growing on the upright trunks and branch crotches of trees with rough bark between 10 to 20 feet (3-6 meters) above the ground. There are usually found growing in near permanent bodies of water.

Plant Size:Cattleya aclandiae is a dwarf, 3-5 in. (7-12 cm), rarely 8 in. (20 cm). Small and bifoliate. Pseudobulbs, 2-8 in. (5-20 cm) long are short, cylindrical, and slightly broader near their top than at the base and topped with two thick, fleshy leaves (2-3 in. (5-8 cm) long) with red or black spots or blotches The blotches that sometimes cover the entire leaf surface. This characteristic tends to increase when plants are grown in high light.

Flower Size: 2.5 inches to 4 inches (6 to 10 cm). The flowers of Cattleya aclandiae are large for the size of the plant.

Flower Description: One to (rarely) 3 flowers develop on short stems that develop in the protection of the leaves and emerge from the top of new growths. Each waxy, long-lasting blossom of Cattleya aclandiae is 3 to 4 in. (7-10 cm) across and has a mild, spicy fragrance. Sepals and petals are green or yellowish with variable amounts of dark red-brown, dark purple, or nearly black spotting. When Cattleya aclandiae is grown in very bright light, an additional reddish-brown suffusion may be superimposed. The small, white-edged side-lobes of the lip curl up but do not enclose column. The large, flat mid-lobe of the lip is magenta to deep purple with darker veins. A broad exposed column, which lies with its bottom side very close to the lip, is deep purple or dark magenta. The anther is contrasting yellow.

Bloom Season: Spring, Summer

Growing Temperature: Intermediate,Warm, Hot. In its native environment, summer days average 82-84 F (28-29 C), and nights average 71-72 F (22 C), with a diurnal range of 11-12 F (6-7 C). Winter days in its habitat average 77-79 F (25-26 C), and nights average 64-65 F (17-19 C), with a diurnal range of 9-11 F (5-6 C).

Growing Information:Cattleya aclandiae is a compact member of the Cattleya family and is well-suited for growers who have a limited amount of space to allocate towards their hobby. For best flowering, provide a dry winter rest period. Begin watering heavily when new growth appears. Flowers will develop on the new growth and bloom in the late spring or early summer.

Light: Provide bright light (4000-4500 fc. or 70 percent of full sun), brighter than most species of Cattleya. Plants can be hung up higher, close to the glass, to give them the maximum amount of light possible without damaging the foliage. Provide strong air circulation to help cool the foliage and prevent leaf burn and help plants dry out after watering. Light and growing conditions influence ultimate size of the plant.

Humidity: Provide 80-85 percent humidity for most of the year. Its acceptable for summer humidity to drop into the 75-80 percent range.

Water:Cattleya aclandiae should be watered regularly throughout the year, but they must dry rapidly after watering. Make sure that the plants never stay dry for long periods of time, however. Give mounted plants a daily misting in summer with a thorough soaking of the entire plant and slab twice a week in summer, or three times a week in extremely hot weather (adjust for your climate). Water should be reduced somewhat in winter, but plants should never stay dry for long periods.

Growing Media:Cattleya aclandiae is frequently grown mounted on cork slabs or in baskets, but some growers report success using pots with extremely open fast draining medium such as coarse bark nuggets. Whatever the choice of medium, it is critically important that the roots dry rapidly after watering or root rot is a near certainty. Use very small slabs for mounting this species because larger slabs retain to much water. Tree-fern slabs hold more water and should only be used only in very dry growing conditions. When mounting, do not use sphagnum moss between the mount and the plant because it retains too much moisture and promotes rot. Divide, repot, or remount only when new root growth is just starting. This lets the plant become established in the shortest possible time with the greatest success.

Additional Information: There is a blue form of Cattleya aclandiae available (Cattleya acklandiae var. coerulea). It has a coerulea-colored lip with less contrast on the petals and sepals. Cattleya amethystoglossa hybridizes naturally with Cattleya aclandiae. In hybridizing programs, Cattleya aclandiae has proven very useful in producing compact hybrids with large flowers of good substance. The spotting on the sepals and petals carries through to the offspring when crossed with other bifoliate Cattleyas, but it disappears if crossed with Sophronitis coccinea, Laelia milleri, or Cattleya aurantiaca. The offspring generally bloom several times a year producing long-lasting flowers that have rich color and heavy substance.

The first person to successfully grow and flower Cattleya aclandiae was Sir Thomas Ackland in 1840. The plant is named in honor of his wife, Lady Ackland.

Synonyms:Cattleya acklandiae, Cattleya aclandiae, Cattleya aucklandiae, Cattleya auclandii, Epidendrum acklandiae, Epidendrum aclandiae. (Source: http://cattleya.wikidot.com/cattleya-aclandiae).

Overall, I found the people very welcoming and generous and I will certainly attend all the future meetings.

Orchid seeds have only minute reserves of nutrients and need a fungus for germination in nature, this is called “symbiotic” germination. The required nutrients are provided by the fungus. Growth of seedlings is rapid. Until 1922, it was the only known method of propagating orchids from seeds.

In 1922, Dr. Lewis Knudson of Cornell University provided us with a simpler method, “asymbiotic germination.” Seeds are germinated and seedlings are grown on a sterile, jelly like, culture medium containing sugars and many other nutrients. Germination takes place without the aid of a fungus. Today, Knudson’s formula “C” medium is still being used in laboratories all over the world. Since unwanted bacteria and fungi grow even faster on a sugar rich medium than orchid seedlings, all seeds, flasks, medium, and tools used must be sterilized. All the work involved, like sowing, transferring seedlings etc, is performed in a sterile environment, such as a laminar flow hood or a glovebox.

Sowing of orchid seeds in a “mother flask” is done in a sterile environment, like a laminar flow hood. Filtered through a HEPA filter, sterile air enters the cabinet and passes over the work area. Sowing of seeds is a simple procedure. Germination medium is prepared and poured into clean flasks. Flasks with medium are then autoclaved at 120 degrees Celsius and 15 lbs. pressure for 20 minutes if small quantities of medium per flasks; longer for larger quantities. Cooled flasks are moved into the laminar flowhood where sterilized seeds are distributed evenly on top of the medium. Flasks are tightly sealed and may have a filter to allow air and moisture exchange between inside and outside. The filter must be dense enough to keep micro organisms out. The latter would spoil the germination process. Flasks are then placed under fluorescent lights for a 12 hour photoperiod, for most epiphytic species. Some orchid seeds need total darkness to germinate. After two to three months in the “mother flask”, seedlings are large enough to be transferred to a richer medium and larger vessel. The transfer process is called replating.

Replating, or moving seedlings from the old vessel to another with fresh medium, is done in a sterile environment. Seedlings are replated when they have reached a stage of growth at which they will greatly benefit from being placed on nutrient richer medium. Seedlings will now grow very rapidly and usually remain in these flasks for approximately one year, or until they are large enough to be planted out to a community pot.

The community pot may hold from fifteen to 30 seedlings. Plants may spend up to one year in the community pot, before being transplanted to individual pots. After several more transplants and lots of tender loving care in years following, the orchids reach the “flowering size” stage, finally! From seed to flowering plant takes from three to seven years, depending on which orchid species seeds were sown.

Caring for Flasks

It is fun and educational watching orchids grow inside flasks. Flasked seedlings need light/dark, proper temperature and humidity. Handle flasks by grasping them near the bottom, away from the foil covered filtered top. Covered filter tops keep out micro organisms that could spoil the contents when allowed to enter the flasks.

Never place flasks in direct sunlight, unles you wish to cook the seedlings.The light should be of low intensity, 300 footcandles, gradually increased as seedlings grow bigger. Place them 30 centimeters below two four feet coolwhite 40Watts fluorescent lamps that cover a growing area of two by four feet. Lights must be on 12 hours per day. Remember the 12 hours uninterrupted darkness is equally important for seedling development.

Temperatures in the 24 degrees C (75 degrees F) range are adequate, give or take 2 degrees C. Keep the variation between day and night time temperatures to an absolute minimum.

Flasks that have filtered tops allow air and humidity exchange of the inside with the environment in which they are placed.To prevent the culture medium from drying out, place flasks in an environment where the relative humidity is about 60%. Keep air movement in the flasking area to a minimum. No fans!

Deflasking Seedlings

Seedlings stay in replate flasks for about one year, but can stay longer if the medium has not yet been depleted of necessary nutrients. Seedlings are deflasked, when leaves are at least 5 centimeters long, cleaned of all agar and transplanted to a community pot.

Pour some tepid water into the flasks and carefully swirl it to break up the agar. A spatula may be used to gently aid the breakup. Pour water and seedling mix into a bowl half filled with tepid water. Rinse seedling roots and leaves free of agar. Submerge the seedlings for about ten minutes in a weak systemic fungicide solution, like Benomyl, then place them on paper towels to dry.

Preparing Community Pots

Use a well drained, clean pot and line the bottom with drainage material. Fill the pot to within one inch from the rim with damp, loosely packed sphagnum moss. Wrap the roots of a dry seedling loosely with the same damp sphagnum moss and place the “package” in the pot. Repeat the process until the pot is filled with seedling packages touching each other. Finish by filling gaps between seedlings and pot edge with some loose sphagnum. Write the proper orchid name plus the “compot date” on plant labels and put one label in every pot.

Taking Care of Community Pot Seedlings

Seedlings deflasked have come from a 100% relative humidity environment inside the flask. Do not shock them by moving them to a 50 or 60% immediately, but rather do it gradually. This can be done by placing the pots in a tray covered with a clear plastic dome with top vents closed, which over a period of time can be gradually opened. Keep the pots about 30 cm below two 40W fluorescent lamps, as desribed above for flask lighting. Keep temperatures around the 24 degrees C. Prevent seedling medium from drying out, but do not have it soaking wet and cause root rot. Start a regular watering program right away; fertilizing program in one or two weeks from compotting date.

Pictures

Divisions

C. intermedia

• C. intermedia alba ‘Penn Valley’ AM/AOS: One two bulb division is growing well and has started three new growths.
• C. intermedia ‘Pine Knot’: Two divisions. 1) Three bulbs with two new growths. 2) Two bulbs with one new growth.

C. lawrenceana

Currently I have one two bulb division growing in a 2″ plastic pot. It has shown no new growths but seems to be developing new roots.

Backbulbs

C. intermedia

• C. intermedia alba ‘Penn Valley’ AM/AOS. This was my first attempt at working with backbulbs and has been successful. There is a new growth and new roots are also developing.

C. lawrenceana

• One single psuedobulb division in a 2″ plastic pot. No new growth yet but the psuedobulb is in pretty good shape.

Related articles

• My Back Bulb Project (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Seventeen Classic Cattleya Species Plus Two (cattleyaorchids.net)
• The Beginning: The First Five Orchids (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Treating my First Sick Plant (cattleyaorchids.net)

Image via CrunchBase

Since I do not have access to an established orchid nursery or orchid store where I live, I have mostly relied on Ebay sellers to build my collection. You will be surprised to know that Ebay has a large number of orchid sellers, some of whom are avid orchid growers and/ or own and operate large orchid nurseries as well. I am only reviewing sellers with whom I have had two or more positive interactions.  Before I provide brief reviews of my interactions with some of these sellers, I must list certain important things to keep in mind if you decide to buy from any Ebay sellers:

• Check their customer ratings as the ratings will inform you about the quality/ quantity of plants that they have sold and also about their overall service.
• Do not hesitate to contact a seller if you have any questions about their listed items.
• Avoid sellers who might have a picture of the flower but not of the actual plant that they are selling. Also, check if the plant picture is taken against foot ruler/ measuring tape as it gives you a clear idea of the size of the plant.
• Note if the seller provides clear description (Genre, species, size etc.) of the plant.
• Also inform yourself through non-Ebay sources about the plant that you are planning to buy.
• When the plants arrive, inspect them carefully and introduce them to your collection only after you are sure that they do not carry any diseases etc. that could impact your collection.

Based on my experience with several Ebay sellers, I have found the following sellers to be honest, professional, and trustworthy. This, of course, is based on my own personal experience and should in no way be construed as a motivated  endorsement. I write this of my own accord and none of these sellers have either asked me or induced me in any way to write these reviews. Also, I have only included sellers with whom I have had at least two positive Ebay encounters.

mikesorchids

(Plants sold so far: 1308; Positive feedback: 100%)

My first ever orchids came from Mike. Based in Portland, OR, Mike grows only Cattleya species orchids and sells them only on Ebay. As he only sells in spring, he may not have any orchids listed yet. I have found Mike to be extremely knowledgable and generous with his time. In the early stages of my collection, I often emailed MIke about technical questions about orchids and he was always kind in answering my questions.

oorchids

(Plants sold so far: 4495; Positive feedback: 100%)

Their store on Ebay is called Treetop Orchids. I think they are based in Pennsylvania. The quality of their plants and seedlings indicates that they are highly professional orchid growers who primarily sell on Ebay. I have bought about four plants from them, mostly seedlings, and all those plants are healthy and growing nicely.

budsandexotics

(Plants sold so far: 992; Positive feedback: 100%)

I have bought two beautiful plants from this seller. Based in Florida, budsandexotics seems to specialize in large size plants and you can get a nicely grown flowering size plant for a real good price. Make sure to get the plants shipped through USPS as I have had problems when the plants were shipped by UPS.

eauchiche

(Plants sold so far: 874; Positive feedback: 100%)

Based in California, eauchiche sometimes sells species orchids. I have so far bought two beautiful flowering size plants from him and one of them, C. percivaliana, was actually the first plant to bloom in my greenhouse. I will certainly be visiting eauchiche‘s Ebay store in the spring for some more plants.

As I said above, these are some of the sellers that I have bought multiple plants from. I will add more to this list as my interactions with other sellers reaches the two-plant threshold.

Related articles

• Orchids: To Buy or Not to Buy on Ebay (cattleyaorchids.net)
• The Beginning: The First Five Orchids (cattleyaorchids.net)
• My C. warscewizii Quest (cattleyaorchids.net)

I then looked elsewhere to see if I could buy a plant from some commercial sellers but most of them either did not have it or their prices were too high for me.

Then suddenly, I found one seedling listed on Ebay (1 below) and I was able to buy it at a very affordable rate: it is now happily growing in my greenhouse.

Then a few weeks later, someone listed a flowering size plant on Ebay. Aware that the last plant of this size had gone for quite a hefty sum, I was not sure if I’d be able to get it but I placed my maximum bid anyway. I ended up winning the bid well within my budget, even though another bidder tried to “sneak-buy” it at the last moment. This plant (2 below) is on its way but it has also gathered a sister plant in the process. It turned out that the same seller was also selling some seedlings of C. Gigas (which used to be what C. warscewizii was originally called), so naturally I was interested. This was more interesting because this particular seedling is a very dark variety (3 below) and since it was being sold by the same seller, I could combine shipping. As a result both these plants are on their way. Thus pretty soon, I will end up having three varieties of C. warscewizii.

So, the ultimate lesson is that patience usually works but also a bit of information about the species also goes a long way. For example, had I not known that C. gigas used to be the original name of C. warscewizii, the third plant would have not caught my attention.

The details of the plants are provided below:

1. C.  warscewiczii var semi alba ‘Katia’ x self

• Date Acquired: 12/04/11
• Size:  Seedling.
• From: diamondorchids.

2. C.  warscewiczii var semi-alba ‘Bedford’ x self

• Date Acquired: 01/02/12
• Size:  Flowering Size.
• From: shermantp.

3. C. gigas ‘Ebano’ (darker form of warscewiczii)

• Date Acquired: 01/09/12
• Size:  Seedling.
• From: shermantp.

Related articles

• Cattleya warscewiczii in my Greenhouse (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Seventeen Classic Cattleya Species Plus Two (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Cattleya skinneri in my Greenhouse (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Orchids: To Buy or Not to Buy on Ebay (cattleyaorchids.net)
• Search for Cattleya eldorado (cattleyaorchids.net)

This is just to let you know that we have just published the final issue of year 2011. Sorry for the slight delay in publishing this issue, but you will see that this issue was worth waiting for.

I am deeply grateful to all our contributors and our volunteer staff for making yet another issue of Pakistaniaat possible.

We are also thankful to professor Nadia Hussain for letting us use her art for the cover.

Please take a few moments to view our Table of Contents and pass the word to others: TOC