Cattleya maxima fma. delicata - the very first Cattleya on my windowsill

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GuRu

experienced greenhorn
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This orchid has a quite long history. At the beginning of this millenium I decided to restart growing orchids after giving up my greenhouse in 1989, two times moving house and building a new house. I put my eyes on Paphs but wanted to keep growing few orchids from my greenhouse time (e.g. Catasetum fimbriatum) and also wanted to grow few orchids I like very much. I wasn't sure I could grow a Cattleya on my windowsill but I wanted to try it and bought one Cattleya I like very much ..... a common Cattleya maxima ..... in a orchid nursery not far away.
I tried several cultural methods and potting mediums, neglected it ..... but couldn't kill it. She was still here when I decided after encouraging of David (monocotman) to fill up som empty windowsills with Cattleyas. I repotted it and gave it more care ..... and now I can enjoy the first flowers.
But she flowers not as a common Cattleya maxima (what I expected) but as an almost alba flower, but the tender lilac veins on the inside of the lip make it not to be a album variety. She isn't also no semialba and I read in the internet some call this forma delicata.
Maybe Leslie or others can confirm this or not.

08928_22.10.31_cattleya_maxima_fma_delicata.jpg


08929_22.10.31_cattleya_maxima_fma_delicata.jpg
 
Last edited:
Well done Rudolf! Tenacity paid off.

And David, nice encouragement (aka supporter and enabler lol).

I would designate this as either albescent or delicata due to pure white flowers with a delicately veined light pink magenta lip.
 

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