Hello all!

Would someone be so kind as to explain to me how to determine when a seedling Cattleya reaches maturity? Is it based on the amount of pb's & their size? How can I tell?

This has been nagging at me because I purchased some plants that are NBS. I've since discovered that 'near blooming size' can mean as long as 2 years to bloom! For those of you who've been chatting with me and have gotten to know me a bit.... I'M NOT THAT PATIENT! LOL! I'm just really desperate for a blooming catt. I have about 2 dozen of them and none in bloom currently, 2 in sheath, 1 confirmed w/ buds in sheath. I'm hoping these are all autumn bloomers (but I am pretty sure that I'm going to have to wait for winter for many of them). I do know for sure that about 6 of them are NBS so I'd like to be able to have some insight as to what to look for, etc.

I just really want to learn as much as I can about Cattleyas. As much as they make me crazy, it makes me love them all the more!

Thank you in advance for sharing your knowledge, it's greatly appreciated!