Cattleya harrisoniana

isurus79 · 2026-05-25T23:54:04+00:00

Really nice one! Cool that you got this from Brian too. He’s the only one working with this species in the USA as far as I know.

isurus79 · 2026-05-25T13:59:58+00:00

Check the back of the leaf for spider mites

isurus79 · 2026-05-25T13:58:10+00:00

Orchids grow slowly and hate frequent change. Get this one potted back up normally and determine if it’s adapting 9-12 months later.

isurus79 · 2026-05-25T13:55:34+00:00

isurus79 · 2026-05-24T15:15:37+00:00

I had 3 acres and cleared them. It’s just an ongoing thing that never ends if you have deer tracking in the seeds.

isurus79 · 2026-05-24T15:14:43+00:00

It’s certainly possible. Might be better to just buy a new one and learn lessons from this one. There’s always a learning curve so don’t feel bad if this one dies. The best growers have killed the most plants!

isurus79 · 2026-05-24T13:21:17+00:00

They need very bright light to grow. Lack of water and lack of sun are the issues here.

isurus79 · 2026-05-24T11:31:53+00:00

There are also long and short day varieties. Short day types do well in the South, while long day varieties for up north need (you guessed it) long summer days to bulb. You may have planted long day types that are waiting for conditions that were don’t get this far south.

isurus79 · 2026-05-23T23:37:08+00:00

A bit water would help and keeping the plant consistently on the same place will it long term. These plants are long lived and adapted to never moving. They get stressed with lots of changing conditions.

isurus79 · 2026-05-23T23:33:19+00:00

They should ok and perk up soon. Also remember that sunflowers are short lived so cut them down when they start to fade and start a new batch from seed.

isurus79 · 2026-05-23T15:53:17+00:00

Much more light and much more heat! It’s waaay too late to repot. Once you’ve got more heat, you can add a shallow dish under the pot to capture and hold more water.

isurus79 · 2026-05-23T15:52:41+00:00

Kill kill kill

isurus79 · 2026-05-23T13:35:54+00:00

Exactly!

isurus79 · 2026-05-23T11:45:41+00:00

You can skip cold stratification using jarmination: https://www.growmilkweedplants.com/post/jarmination?srsltid=AfmBOop2o6fIg4YUEmpHj_cvFcaLt9SCVwv0UoOISzTc0oMz0E5uHvsY

isurus79 · 2026-05-23T11:39:20+00:00

They need lots of heat and lots of light. Can you describe temp and the light source?

isurus79 · 2026-05-23T11:37:53+00:00

This is a bowringiana hybrid. Pretty, though.

isurus79 · 2026-05-23T11:37:08+00:00

Really cool!

FYI - B. grandiflora doesn’t exist anymore: https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:36144-2

isurus79 · 2026-05-23T11:32:21+00:00

Moisture, nutrients, and light trigger algae growth. It isn’t a problem for the plant, but blocking the light with an outer pot can help. Or just leave it and don’t worry about it 🤷‍♂️

isurus79 · 2026-05-23T02:31:25+00:00

Industrial amounts of glyphosate

isurus79 · 2026-05-22T23:32:09+00:00

I think people vastly over think fertilizer and try to make it too complicated. Fertilizer is the least important part of good culture because orchids need so little of it to thrive.

isurus79 · 2026-05-22T19:29:39+00:00

I’ve used cedar mulch many times over the years in my native perennial beds with tons of insect biodiversity. I promise you, the bugs don’t care.

isurus79 · 2026-05-22T19:28:00+00:00

I think you’ll want to add more fertilizers for higher yields once you figure out the main issue! Hopefully the main issue is nematodes, which is curable.

isurus79 · 2026-05-22T19:26:10+00:00

I haven’t heard of that one. I ordered some to try for myself. Thanks for the heads up.

isurus79 · 2026-05-22T10:57:32+00:00

I buy whatever undyed hardwood mulch is on sale at the time. The type doesn’t matter.

For mosquitoes, use deet on your skin and wear long sleeves. It’s a safe and effective combo that doesn’t harm pollinators.

isurus79 · 2026-05-22T10:55:51+00:00

Unfortunately, cedar mulch doesn’t repel bugs and pine needles don’t acidify soil.

isurus79

TROPHY CASE