Bloom Event - Cattleya Pastoral Innocence

I was in a shabby mood so I decided to write a blog post from some outstanding (in time, not quality) photos that I hadn't got around to posting yet. They have only been sitting about for a week or so, it's not as if I've been sitting on them for months.  Buena Vista Social Club playing in the background (not in person, obviously), I could almost imagine a glass of something ice cold, crystal clear and very strong in my hand. But I'll make do with my cup of Earl Grey tea instead.

I have had this Cattleya for some time, and have gradually nursed it back to health. I think I upset it slightly by repotting it. At the time it had finished its new pseudobulb and was producing roots. Only a couple of weeks after did I notice buds appearing from the top of the newest growth. A sheath would have been nice, I might have had some warning then and held off repotting till after flowering. As it is, I have disturbed it, so the blooms are smaller than they would otherwise be.

Yes, its another of those big blousy Cattleya that I shouldn't really like (I'm not a fan of big blousy flowers in the garden, after all), but I just can't resist them. Scented, of course. This plant seems to produce quite large flowers in proportion to the size of the plant, almost always in pairs. As with the other Cattleya that are reaching a 'size', after a couple of years I shall try to get the plant to produce more lead growths and so increase the overall flower count. It would be even better if these separate growths would time themselves to bloom at the same time, but they never do.

I really like the splash of daffodil yellow at the centre of the flower. Pure white flowers can look a bit bland and flat, just a tiny splash of colour can really lift them. As you can see, the plant is looking a bit tatty with some black marks on the leaves. Unless they spread, I don't worry too much about them. Cattleya can get a bit battered over the course of a few seasons since they keep their leaves for quite a long time.

Just recently, I have been selling off some excess plants (mostly plants I have more than one of) to make some room in my growroom for plants I want for myself.  I'm quite particular about what I'll sell, and I wouldn't send out a plant I wasn't happy to receive. The main reason for this is my own insecurity about being an orchid grower, and knowing what other people are like. Especially the medium of eBay is hell on earth. A plant got returned today, so not only has it cost me the postage AND the final value fee, but somehow I also end up with a slur on my reputation, and I've done nothing wrong. And get this....If I'd decided I wanted the plant back, I'd have had to pay ANOTHER lot of postage for the privilege of getting my own plant back! I can well understand why people get annoyed with it. For me personally, I take criticism very personally, especially when I know i'm being fed some spurious rubbish and the customer just wants a free plant. It is much easier to just refund the money and block them from buying again, which is exactly what I've done. I feel sorry for the sellers they buy from in the future after how I've been treated. So, in answer to the inevitable question:- No, I shan't be falling over myself to sell more plants in the future. Frankly, I'd rather they went in the bin than put up with this again. I probably shouldn't have said any of that but this blog is, as they say, very much my party, and I'll say what I jolly well please.

Rant over, I guess I'd better go and find someone who'll butter my ego! An hour in the orchid room should help.