Cattleya lawrenceana

Also known as: Sir Trevor Lawrence's Cattleya or Cattleya lawrenceana h.f. alba Cattleya lawrenceana h.f. semialba Cattleya lawrenceana h.v. lawrenceana Cattleya lawrenceana h.f. coerulea Cattleya lawrenceana h.f. concolor Cattleya lawrenceana h.f. flammea Cattleya lawrenceana var. concolor Cattleya lawrenceana var. rosea-superba in the subfamily: Epidendroideae

Native to: Guyana

General Information

Sir Trevor Lawrence's Cattleya is a large sympodial warm to hot growing epiphytic orchid belonging to the sub family Epidendroideae native to Guyana.

Plant Description

Sympodial. Grows to 40cm. Each new growth has a single leaf that grows to 20cm long. Pseudobulbs grow to 25cm

Flowers

Numerous long lasting, fragrant blossoms appear during Autumn and Winter

Fragrance

The orchid is fragrant. The fragrance can be described as sweet

Blooming Season

• Autumn
• Winter

Substrate(s)

• Coarse

Care Notes

These orchids like to be kept on the dry side, but may need to be watered daily during warm weather, and prefer a well draining mix or also do well mounted, provided they can be watered regularly.

These are quite a forgiving orchid, there are no special requirements to get this orchid to flower, just good care and consistent conditions. Larger plants may be more fussy and can react poorly to change; a poorly timed repotting, a pest infection or an unusually hot day can set them back for a couple of years. However, even plants that have been treated poorly can thrive, and if they are set back they often recover much stronger then they would otherwise be.

Fragrant:

• IsFragrant

Climate

Grows at low to high elevations. Rainfall ranges from 81mm to 244mm per day, heaviest in May and lightest in January. Humidity ranges from 77% to 89%, highest in June and lowest in March. Temperature ranges from 17C to 31C, highest in February (20C to 31C) and lowest in September (17C to 29C).

Fertiliser

Apply liquid based fertiliser per recommended directions. They can benefit from a high phosphate fertiliser leading up to flowering season, followed by a high nitrogen fertiliser when new growth appears, and a balanced fertiliser in other times. These orchids can also tolerate slow release fertiliser applied 1-2 pellets per cup (250ml) of media.

Be sure to flush out excess fertiliser by running water through the media regularly year round. Apply fertiliser regularly at half strength year round. Use a high Nitrogen fertiliser during Spring and Summer. Use a high Phosphorous fertiliser during Summer. Reduce fertiliser when plant is dormant during Spring.

Potting

These plants are quite forgiving and will do well repotted ever 2-3 years. The mix should be coarse, well draining, and allow space for air to move and for roots to grow. 

Alternatively, these plants will also do well mounted to tree fern or cork slabs, or mounted to trees.

Best time for repotting or mounting the orchids is the end of winter when new growths start to appear. Avoid repotting during hot weather,