Catasetum schunkei

another one for the mini catasetum collection, slightly similar to the denticulatum but the lateral sepals do not open as wide as the denticulatum. However the labellum is very different with the fringe of the labellum is curled and pointed up.

the pot is slightly less than two inches tall, so that would roughly illustrate how small the flower and plant is

Cycnoches warscewiczii

this is my first cycnoches species, was looking around for a chlorochilon but got this one instead, i guess half a loaf of bread is better than none.this Cycboches warscewiczii is from the section of the Eu-cycnoches, flowers are large 9cm across and in height as well, the lateral sepals are in acute angle to the lip and the ventral sepal. the arrangement of the petals are not reflexed. the other three closely related species to this, namely are the chlorochilon, ventricosum and lemahnii.
this plant was originally came in sphagnum moss, but the moss was removed prior to sending. would like to take this opportunity to thank this particular person. the old PB was slightly infected when it arrived and was removed after the new growth is old enough to nurture itself, this is to prevent the infection from spreading.

the original PB was 14 inches long but the new shoot developed a 14.5inches PB, did not expect it to grow to this length because it was cultured in 100% charcoal media and was derived from a bare bulb.

 the right lateral sepals was deformed slightly, most like from the use of the systemic fungicide. the original plant that came was with flowers, no deformity was noted on any of the flowers back then

 lateral view showing the appearance of the flower, with non reflexed flower

second spike on 16/11/2014

Clowesetum Creative Copper Gold

this is a cross between Clowesia Grace Dunn and Catasetum tenberosum, psedubolb is stout but plump, thanks to the clowesia gene but size is much bigger compare to the clowesia relative. this rooting system of this plant like the clowesia is with abundant pneumatophore, but much more vigorous in nature. for that, i do recon this plant to be planted in basket netting like this one here, or mounted to have allow the rooting system to develop naturally. coloration of the bloom is 'very tenebrosum'.

catasetum rectangulare

according to internet citation, when this species was initially discovered, it was mistaken for catasetum callosum alba.

however, the labellum and the lateral sepals will enable one to tell the difference between a rectangulare and a callosum alba. the lateral margin of the lobe margin are parallel before they converge into each other at the lip apex. in callousm, the lib is triangular in shape; 

the lateral sepals of rectagulare are with sickle shapre slightly while it is straight in the callosum. 

physically, the flower of rectangulare is much smaller than callosum and pedicle are much shorter as well. lateral dimension of the rectangulare is 3cm, labellum is 0.8cm wide and 1cm in length. the bracts of rectangulare is also shorter as compare to callosum.

catasetum maculatum

this is catasetum maculatum, one of the hooded catasetums. at least for me personally, slight fragrance noted, the spike is arching in nature. 

easily identified and distinguished from its two closely resemblance counterparts, namely the intergerrimum and viridiflavum. the orifice of the labellum in maculatum is serrated and rectangular, while in integerrimum is round and smooth. 

as for viridiflavum, it is easily recognized by the large globoid hood and the spike is more erected compare to the maculatum. 

i hereby included the pic of the integerrimum and viridflavum towards the end of this thread for ease ones understanding between the differences of these three species

(catasetum viridiflavum)

(catasetum integerrimum)

catasetum discolor

this is catasetum discolor, a close relative to catasetum ciliatum. they looked almost alike, and even till now some internet pages still regard them as synonym to each other. however when it was brought to my attention lately that these two belongs to two different species, i decided to buy this species when i bumped into it in the nursery, even though the bulb was infected at that time. 

i remove the infected area and was hoping for a new growth to appear but a spike developed instead. i took the risk by letting the spike to develop because the curiosity to witness the differences between the two species.

according to internet citation, both the discolor and ciliatum have 65% genetic similarity, however, physically the discolor flower is smaller compare to the ciliatum.at the inner labellum, the ciliatum has velvety stripes that is brownish to purplish in color. the spike of ciliatum is erect while for discolor it is semi erect. 

silent killer

it is always a happy and joyous moment when we receive the parcel of orchids but even buying dormant bare catasetum bulbs may carry some risk. below is a pic of the bulbs when they arrived. externally they looked healthy but i always make it a habit to inspect the bulb with scrutiny.it is like searching for an escaped fugitive and no rocks shall be left unturn. and every inch of the bulb will be examine and the bases are cut slightly to check the internal condition.

often, it is rewarding to take such tedious and meticulous effort for any residual or source of infection in the bulb that is hiding inside is not only harmful to its own survival but also poses a major threat to other orchids in the existing collection. 

and here is what i meant........

this bulb is from the upper left corner of above picture, notice the discolored brown blotch? well, if my memory serves me correctly, it is a cercospora infection. 

well, sometimes the cutting process can be quite scary to a newbie due to the amount needed to be trim off 

after all the cutting and slicing, always make it a habit to treat them with appropriate anti-infective compound. for my case, ten percent sodium hopochlorite and followed by benomyl/mancozeb or both. 

The dwarf and The giant

if my memory serves me correctly, the pileatum is with the largest flower while the denticulatum is one with the smallest flower in the genera. the pileatum can reach up to ten centimeters across (plus minus) while the denticulatum is just slightly over an inch across. the PB of the denticulatum is about 4 inches plus at maturity, while the pileatum can grow up to a foot in length. 
timing is a little bit off, would be better if both the spike reaches its prime at the same time. but however this is life, there are ups and downs for everyone and everything is impermanent. most important is that we cherish each of the good moments and may the memories be one of our guardian angel guiding us through our hard times.

spike from a bare bulb

just to share this, not uncommon for catasetums but occasionally they can do this. after division, this particular bulb decided to grow a spike rather than a new growth. this phenomena would actually drain much energy from this bulb. although i had seen the flower of this hybrid before and also this is the very last bulb i had of this variety in my collection, the curiosity in me decided to take the risk just to experience this myself.

appearance of the spike several weeks later, by now at the base of the spike there is some roots emerging with the solo purpose to feed the spike

sometimes, basal root will appear from the bottom of the spike to support the nutritional need of the spike

manage to bloom, but without good rooting system, only two in a spike

inducing a male spike

it is well known that catasetum male flowers are form under lower lighting conditions while the female are formed under brighter growing conditions. for decades growers had been moving plants to heavier shades area to induce male flower, either for id purpose or to enjoy male blooms for the female are considered "ugly" to most orchid growers. 

however moving a plant to heavier shade sometimes carries some risk if they were to be moved to a too heavily shade area and later was forgotten to be moved back out under the sun. it is suggested in literature that some used aluminium foil and mold it into a shape of a cap to block the light to a developing spike. i modified the method, using a polystyrene cube and then bore a hole in the center. the polystyrene cube is about three inches in length and nearly about 2cm in diameter. the advantage of this method compared to the aluminium foil is it is almost weightless and does not carries the risk of damaging the spike due to heat conduction. 
this method provide shade to the developing spike without diminishing the plant of its light. i had tried this a couple of times and basically it works all the time. but bear in mind that it is easier to induce a male than a female and it you are experience enough to spot a developing female spike before the buds appear (usually the spike is with a more erected position for non erected spike species and the diameter is larger), you will induce hermaphrodites most of the times!

the polystyrene cap was apply to the spike the moment it can hold the "poly-cap". i sometimes used a smaller cap, about half the size to had a earlier cap to the spike and later change to the custom size cap. 

the poly-cap is three inches in length and about 2cm across

slide the cap gently down and avoid damaging the tip of the spike.

appearance of the spike after about two weeks of capping, basically this is a male spike forming, judging by the semi arching appearance and smaller diameter of the flower spike. will keep in mind to update this post once they flowered.

have fun try this !!!

Catasetum planiceps

catasetum planiceps, spiek is upright and most commonly mistaken for a female spike of other catasetums to one that is not familiar with catasetums. another catasetum that is commonly mistaken for a planiceps is its natural hybrid, Catasetum xwendlingeri (pileatumxplaniceps)

flowers are non resupinated, the petals and sepals are held tightly against the opening of the hood. slight fragrance, and the flowers turn from green to slightly yellow as it ages. spike emerges from the base of the bulb and produces spike at the stage where the growth is still relatively immature.

the anternna residing in under the hood of this catasetum, indicating a male flower. this is a large catasetum with a very long erected spike. mine is 52.1cm and i believe mine is only a teenager planiceps.


pic showing the appearance of the erected spike emerging from a relative immature new growth

the two pics below show partially the trigger pollina of this male flower

the sepals and petals are tightly clasped against the opening of the hood. the pair of isoceras antennae is visible in this view as well. the antennae run upwards and curve slightly and in the same time started to diverge from each other as they are running upwards of the inner dome.

lateral view of the flower, showing the dome shape appearance of the hood with the characteristic recurvated tip of the labellum

last two additional pic showing the planiceps with natural background

15/7/2014
IT HAS BEEN THREE MONTHS since the last spike, and yes,,,this PB haven't fully mature and had recently come out with two additional spikes. it had already been about 5 months since sprouting of this growth till this current blooming, and by next month it would be 6 months. 6 months for bulb maurity?!..including of dormancy period, this planiceps only yields only 2 to 3 bulbs per year on average basis. seems like the bigger they get, the longer the cycles