Catasetum callosum - 2

this catasetum species originate from Brazil, Amazonas state and Venezuela. fairly easy to grow and not to mentioned hardworking bloomer as well.
the dorsal sepal and petals are fused, acuminate in shape but are separate in other clones. the antennae are parallel flank the callus at the base of the lip as they pass by. the edge of the labellum are faintly hairy with a small sac depression.

the plant and the spike, 13 of them this time

 image below showing the individual flower, the parallel antennae, and the accuminated dorsal sepal and petals are evident

 lateral view of the flower, the sac depression on the lateral view is clear in this view as well as the side view of the conical callus, just above the sac of the lip

the width of the flower measures about 2inches width

close up of the lip showing the callus, located just above the sac of the labellum

measurement of the side view of the flower

measurement of the lip

slight oblique view on the lip, antennae, sac of the labellum and part of the column

second spike is emerging at the same time, keeping my finger cross that it would be more than 13 this time, LOL

Catasetum memoria kampar yip

bought this plant with the label "ctsm macrocarpum" but the moment i saw the red specks on the outer petal before the flower opens, i know for sure it is a mistakenly labelled plant!
this however did not turn out to be a major disappointment because this hybrid is in my wishlist. catasetum memoria kampar yip is a cross between catasetum tuanku zainab petra and catasetum susan fuchs; the former is a cross between catasetum sumani (ctsm pileatum x ctsm saccatum) and catasetum fimbriatum. so i guess we know where this hybrid got its fimbriated lip margin from,
this plant was named in memory of the late orchid enthusiast Mr Yip from Kampar, Malaysia. this hybrid was registered on 3/3/1993. the seed pollen is from catasetum susan fuchs on the registra but as usual even a reciprocal cross between the catasetum tuanku zainab petra and catasetum susan fuchs would also be known as catasetum memoria kampar yip.
spike of 9 with very strong cinnamon like smell, could even smell it from several feet away. love the coloration and pattern of this hybrid, with distinct color markings.

blooms on 25/7/14

catasetum pileatum 'snow cup'

this is the pileatum i like the most, the white pileatum. the came came from the latin word 'pileatus' which means bonnet shape, referring to the large concave lip of the flower. therefore a pileatum should always have a concave lalbellum. this flower was the national flower of Venezuela until 1921.
no callus should be present on the labellum of a pileatum, and the lip should be concave, maybe flatter in some clones but never folds to the back. any presence of calluses or backward folding of the lip is usually a hybrid rather than a pure pileatum. most of the pileatum has longitudinal ribs that runs vertically down from the sac depression of the labellum.
the flowers are large, i am not sure if it is the largest among the catasetums but it is definitely the largest in my collection, the buds started out with light green color and the color gradually turn whitish and eventually white as it matures.
below are a few pics from this plant of mine, showing the gradual coloration changes of the flower bud as it opens. the bulb of this plant is currently slightly over 10inches and it is 31inches plus from base of the bulb till the apex of the leave. a very robust plant and i do hope it will continue to grow bigger in the subsequent cycle.


 the green bud below is the appearance of the flower bud before full maturity, it is greenish in color and the coloration gradually turns white as the bloom matures

the appearance at full bloom

just a close up on the anther beak structure (just toying around with the camera)

 these are large flowers, the height is near to 10cm and the width is 8cm

appearance of the entire plant, not shown here but the second spike is emerging. =)

size of the bulb is 10inches plus, near to 11. so far this one is the record holder in my collection for catasetums