Cattleya Flower Sheath
 

I have looked almost everywhere on the net that I can think of, and only my one book actually gives advice on the Cattleya Flower Sheaths.
SO I will ask here (unless someone can point me in the right direction!).
I recently purchased a C. jenmanii with 2 out of 3 new growths with flower sheaths (the one is about ready to flower).
My question is...do I remove the flower sheath or just let the flower push through the sheath?
I have read the threads (on this forum) about C. flower sheath rot /or drop. I am concerned about this since this is an orchid I have been looking for awhile now...and finally found it!
..though I wasn't expecting it to be such a MONSTER sized orchid...causing me some issues on WHERE to put it! :scratchhead:
Anyway, I really DON'T want to loose the flowers I have been looking SSSSSSSssssoooooooooooooooooo forward to seeing.
Any and all suggestions are appreciated (BTW, the sheaths are healthy and green, maybe a little of black tarry stuff...which I assume is the "sugar" they produce). Other than that the orchid is very healthy. I will take some PICS (:photo: ) ASAP, and post. For you all to see the state of the sheaths.
Thanks!
Mark
:bananaslide: :banana:

The PICS!
 

As I said..lol..ASAP!
So here is the "main" sheath that looks almost ready to exit it's sheath (both sides of the sheath).
Thanks again for all your help OB!

Mark

http://www.orchidboard.com/community...nii-Side-1.jpg

http://www.orchidboard.com/community...nii-Side-2.jpg


Sorry about the "Yellowness" of the :photo: , didn' take under ideal lighting.

Mark, it looks like you have a sheath within a sheath. I don't think double sheaths are particularily rare, but I am no Catt expert.

If it were mine, I might be tempted to remove the outer sheath, but would not do anything until the buds start to develop and swell within. I have had to split open Catt sheaths in the past, to free stuck buds.

Hi Mark,
I was told by an orchid grower that they usually pop through themselves, but if you see the good size shadow of the bud within, it's okay to snip off across just the very top of the sheathe and help it out a bit. Sometimes they have a hard time to poke through by themselves. I have only done this once, actually. I was afraid it was struggling and it was a young catt. and seemed to be taking forever to poke through. It seem to help it along. I hope this is okay information...but that is what I was told. kiki-do

Yep looks like double your trouble, LOL!
I would remove the first sheath but not the second, or atlease thats how it appears to me - 2 sheaths.
The bud still looks small tho'.

G'luck with your catt!

I agree it looks like a double sheath! I would wait for it to swell a bit more before cutting the outer one.

Thank you all!
 

Thanks for the responses all!

I will leave them both on for now and when the bud gets a little more "dense", I will remove the outer sheath.

If anyone knows some great links on Cattleya growing methods/flowering info...I would be much obliged to getting the info (not sure if it is my orchid addiction to want to know MORE about what I have and how to take the best care for them...or just my usual self...since, when I get involved in something, I do it to the fullest extent...never half @$$ed).

:blushing:

Mark
:bananaslide: :banana:

Cattleya flowering spikes
 

I am new to cattleya orchids . My question is once the spike flowers ,does it ever flower again ? Does one have wait for a new shoot to mature before we get another flower .

Should one remove some of the old growth which has flowered so as to to encourage the plant to produce new shoots for flowering?

Thanks for your kind replies

johnny cheah

I've read a lot of books on orchids and I've never found one that said a whole lot about sheaths. Sheaths do not form on every new pseudobulb but if a sheath is going to form, it will do it when the pseudobulb first grows out. Depending on the blooming season for that orchid it could be up to several months before buds form in the sheath. C. Jenmanii usually blooms around December.

I almost always let the buds break out of the sheath on their own. I don't give them any help. It's possible to harm the buds by trying to remove the sheath. You seem to have a double sheath and that can sometimes cause problems. If the outside sheath stays green I would leave it alone. If it starts to turn yellow, I usually gently peel it away an cut the sides off and leave the inside sheath intact.

I don't recommend cutting the top of a sheath unless the buds have become very large and are obviously having trouble breaking through. That seldom happens but it does occasionally. C. Jenmanii is a nice orchid with a beautiful fragrance.

Cattleya pseudobulbs only bloom once and they never bloom again. Old pseudobulbs shouldn't be removed unless they're dead. The old pseudobulbs add to the strength and overall vigor of the plant. Big plants with lots of old pseudobulbs often produce more and larger flowers because the plant has more energy to draw from.