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.