HELP--Newbie Cattleya owner in need of assistance!

[silken]

Originally Posted by jaxy86

Thanks, you're a life saver

I bought this...is it the right bulb (metal halide)?

350 Watt Metal Halide Pulse Start Grow Light Bulb SLI | eBay

I don't use this type so I can't really say anything helpful about it. Some growers do use metal halide but my impression is they are pretty strong. 350 watts sounds strong to me. But as I said, I really know nothing about them. I use T5 fluorescent bulbs that are either 2 or 4 ft long. I'm wondering if the light is real direct based on its shape and the one brown burn spot.

Maybe someone else will be able to say but in the meantime, you can just make sure the leaf is never getting too warm which if it isn't, it shouldn't burn.

Are all the leaves beginning to turn a brighter green than they were in the beginning? They looked rather dark green in your original pics. Usually the lighter green the leaf, the more light they are getting so that will tell you too if they are getting a lot more light. Also borrowing or buying a light meter would tell you how many foot candles (fc's) are falling on the plant. A cattleya often needs around 3,000 +/- to bloom well.