Cut off or leave old pseudobulbs
 

I have a number of cattleyas that have been hugely neglected. They have suffered periods of months without water or fertiliser. They have thin, leathery leaves.

I’ve been watering these well for a while and they are recovering, with new growth emerging, and I think some of the last-season leaves are actually rehydrated - not back to how they should be but good enough. So I think they are going to make it.

Now I’m thinking about what do next.

The very oldest and dryest pseudobulbs are a no-brainer. Just cut them off.

But what about the ones that aren’t so bad. Wrinkly but still greenish-yellow and photosynthesising to some degree.

Should I cut them off because their potential for disease outweighs their benefits. Like any Cattleya grown outside in a neglectful manner they have a scary amount of dubious spots and patches on the leaves. I have been watching these for a while however and they don’t seem to be spreading.

Should I leave them there to minimise disturbance and benefit the plant through photosynthesis - however little they contribute. In some cases cutting all the desiccated leaves and pseudobulbs off will leave me with a plant with just one mediocre mature leaf and a couple of new leads.

Or should I wait till the new leads are large enough to be net contributors then cut. This sounds like the logical choice but bear in mind that we are in mid-summer now and the new growths were slow to start, so I wouldn’t be cutting till mid autumn - not a time I like to do major plant surgery at all.

Thanks for reading
Arron

I don't have your humidity and constant exposure to pathogens. However, I leave pseudobulbs such as you mention, especially for a plant that's struggling, for the reasons you mention. I don't cut off any old Catt growths until they are dry and brown.

My suggestion would be to leave everything that is alive. It seems natural that they would look bad but they may still be doing some good as you said. If you notice rot or anything spreading cut it off but otherwise let it be. When the plants have new root systems and a few shiny new bulbs, then you can start removing the older stuff.

I 100% agree with both of the above.

-Keith

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Addressing your question on timing, it is not wise to remove old growths leaving roots disconnected in the pot to rot. But removing old growths with their roots will require as much disturbance as repotting, including damaging the roots of the live bulbs.

There is no reason to do anything until the spring growth starts and it is the right time to repot anyway (when new roots just start to emerge). Then you can cut off anything you don't think is contributing to the plant's strength.

-Keith