Cattleya warscewiczii v. sanderiana

[Nataliwind]

I bought this plant one year ago. First time bloomer.
I love to watch the buds opening... they were narrow and closed just a few hours ago.

[Halloamey]

Lovely !! Waiting for the blooms to open !! But aren't the buds too light for a var. sanderiana?

[Nataliwind]

Lovely !! Waiting for the blooms to open !! But aren't the buds too light for a var. sanderiana?

Thanks!
I don't know. I never had blooming sanderiana before. I expect them getting brighter and darker. The buds of my first C. warscewiczii, tipo, looked quite light, too.


And how it bloomed:

Unfortunately, this plant will not bloom this year... still recovering after Black Rot.

[Halloamey]

Natali those are gorgeous !! I have not bloomed a C.warscewiczii before, I just got few plants last year in April, but I have googled for the flowwer photos of the cultivars I have to see how they would bloom (Don't we all do that LOL) And I only knew that the flowers are quite dark, never seen the transformation from the bud to flower before, thats why I had the question. Your Tipo is really stunning, thanks for taking us through the different stages.

[Brutal_Dreamer]

Love seeing those huge buds on your cattleya orchids. Nice growing. Thank you for your dedication to photographing the different stages of the bud development. I really appreciate seeing how the buds develop into blooms.

cheers,
BD

[Valandtonylee@gmail.com]

Hi my name is tony lee ,I live in reading Berkshire England ,I would love to be in your position and grow cattleyas as easy as you ,in this country weather does not permit that but I keep on trying,my growing area is 18ftx15 ft four walls are concrete blocks with a window at the front with a corogated PVC roof.there is a wood burning stove for heating.sometimes it is difficult but I keep trying.

[catttan]

Lovely b;ooms. Have not seen a warscewizii for years. Thanks for posting.

[BarbaraL]

Nataliwind thank you for sharing. How exciting to see the orchid unfold. Better than opening a birthday gift.

[Nataliwind]

Thank you everyone! I appreciate your nice words.
Unfortunately, I have bad news. The plant happened to be virused. I noticed bad looking pattern (spots, color streaks etc.) on petals and tested the plant. Result is ORSV positive. I am shocked. I take good care of my plants and always sterilize pots and cutting instruments etc. I usually check suspicious plants for viruses and keep them separated from my collection. In this case, I did not worry because I bought the plant at the last Redland from a foreign orchid grower. I mean, plants supposed to be healthy and virus-free if they passed customs, are not they? I have no doubt that plant was already infected when I bought it.. too bad it is not always possible to test ANY plant for viruses.
OK, this Cattleya will go into garbage can.... but I still worry about my other plants and wonder if any of them caught this nasty thing or not. I tested its closest "neighbors" and tests are negative, but who knows... Anyway, I am sad.

[Nataliwind]

This is what I saw when I came home today