Cattleyas Thriving in High Temperatures - Especially C. walkeriana

[Vincent]

This has been the hottest summer on record for south Texas, and there was a record drought to go with it. Day after day, we had low humidity, little cloud cover, and high temperatures exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Nevertheless, all of my Cattleyas spent the summer outside as usual, hanging in wooden baskets. That is except for a few days here and there when 105 was forecast and I decided to take them inside for a break. I don’t know if that was really necessary.

Early in the season, those that needed to acclimate to increased hours of direct sunlight were moved in and out, and then each of them was situated to get as many hours as it could handle. For some, that was most of the day.

Since the coarse, aerated medium in their baskets dries out quickly in the sun and heat, I thoroughly watered the orchids every morning and gave them another drink with a hand sprayer each evening. This year, they also received a wide assortment of nutrients on a more frequent basis, mostly because their leaves tended to get a little too yellowish without that, due to the heat and intensity of the sun.

I was pleased to see that Cattleyas can thrive in miserably hot temperatures, but was especially impressed with the exceptional vigor of C. walkeriana under these conditions. I don’t know if the high temperatures played a direct role in growth rate, but the frequent watering, fast drying, and steady supply of nutrients suited the walkerianas especially well.

All five of the mature walkeriana seedlings and divisions I currently have produced multiple new leads simultaneously from old backbulbs and stubs of old flowering growths. New leads also initiated early from developing p-bulbs.

Aside from Cattleya walkerianas, I’ve been growing mostly intermedias, loddigesiis, and dolosas. Until this summer, C. walkeriana was the least likely species among them to initiate multiple leads simultaneously.

This little division is off to a great start!