Cattleya Frankeana (velutina x schilleriana)
 

What do you get when Cattleya velutina and Cattleya schilleriana decide to have a baby?
Well you get a Frankeana!

First flower on this young plant, and i wasn't dissapointed, it has some good qualities from both parents. A lovely cross that should be grown more in my opinion... :waving

Oh yes, nice cross. Very nice!

Thnks Colette! 😃

I agree, it's got so much going for it. The lips, the stripes, the spots, the colors, the shape...I could go on and on :)

:biggrin: you're 'spot' on! And it is fragrant too!

Pat...I bought C. velutina from a grower in California about 2 yrs ago,a very small plant. He had it growing in granite chips which I've kept that way and now finally a pb has formed. When I saw a foto of the bloom,it was exquisite as yours is. How tall is yours?

Hi DeaC, i love velutina, it is such a pretty Cattleya, and it is one with an amazing fragrance! I have two small velutina's and i must admit they are not the easiest to please (for me). One is standing still for about a year now, and the other is thinking about making a new shoot, but it is still doubtfull! The first one is about 15cm tall, the second about 10cm. I got some advise from a excellent grower, she told me velutina's prefer a little less direct (sun) light then other Catt's, and they also prefer to have a little more moist during their growing period. The slender pb have a tendensy to dry and shrivel quite rapidly. She grew them in wooden baskets. The one that is standing 'frozen' in time graced me with one flower a year ago. The shape wasn't perfect, but you could see the potential! :biggrin:

Both the hybrid and the velutina are gorgeous. I have not seen these available here to my knowledge.

:waving Very nice,Pat. I've never been a Catt. fanatic and growing them is challenging for me. Wasn't used to seeing such skinny growths,almost den-like. But this one appealed to me in color and maybe because it's so unusual too.:crossfing

Wow, really pretty.