I would like to present our first candidate in 2021!

Catasetum Russ Wood (Ctsm. kleberianum ‘SVO’ x Ctsm. tigrinum ‘SVO’)

This is a new cross originated and registered by Fred Clarke in 2019.

Both Catasetum species (Ctsm. kleberianum and Ctsm. tigrinum) are originally from Brazil.

Ctsm. tigrinum, Rchb.f. (1881) is found in states of Amazonas, Para, Rondonia and Mato Grosso.

Ctsm. kleberianum, Braga (1994) is found in Amazonas State.

Previous Awards:

There is no awards for this cross.

There are 2 AOS awards for Ctsm. tigrinum: HCC 76 pts in 2013 and CHM 81 pts in 1999.

There is no awards for Ctsm. kleberianum.

Description:

First bloom seedling. 10 flowers on one 14 cm inflorescence. Growing in a 7 cm plastic pot. 2 growths.

Flower Measurements:

NS H - 5.0 cm; NS V - 4.2 cm;

Dorsal Sep. W - 0.5 cm; Dorsal Sep. L - 3.0 cm;

Petal W - 1.1 cm; Petals L - 2.5 cm;

Lat/Sepal W - 0.7 cm; Lat/Sepal L - 2.5 cm;

Lip/Pouch W - 1.1 cm; Lip/Pouch L - 1.7 cm.

Judges' Comments

Al Messina (Accredited Judge, Northeast Judging Center)

Ten flowers on one pendant inflorescence appear to be well formed/reasonably balanced and display a potential for higher floriferousness and, perhaps, size. Kleberianum parent has produced some quite nice offspring (See Ctsm. Double Down, Clo Donna Ballard), as has tigrinum (See: Dentigrinum, Lupita), each superior to this cross, in my opinion. However, as a first bloom seedling, this should qualify for a low HCC 75-76.

Note: Kleberianum should be recognized botanically when possible. It has obvious horticultural value. It might not be a true species but a natural hybrid, very rare where it was found initially. Several populations have been found elsewhere in Brazil. (Holst.1999

p169)

Kristen Mason (Accredited Judge, Cincinnati Judging Center)

Beautifully displayed, consistently marked catasetum primary hybrid. I love the smaller breeding line (particularly plant size). Nice combination of the 2 parents: tigrinum has significantly flattened and widened the sepals of kleberianum which have a tendency to curl. While this flower is still cupped, it is not nearly as cupped as kleberianum. Nice markings from kleberianum contrast beautifully with the yellow background color. I love the blending of the 2 species lips to end up with a very interesting visually appealing lip. Size is above the geometric mean for the parents. Flower count is low - but this plant is a first bloom seedling and should improve with future flowerings. I ended up at 75 point quality award - so should be just below or at an HCC.

Deb Bodei (Associate Judge, Northeast Judging Center)

Catasetum Russ Wood (Ctsm. kleberianum ‘SVO’ x Ctsm. tigrinum ‘SVO’)

Observations

It’s a young plant and first bloom seedling so we are looking for a possible flower award rather than culture. There looks to be only one pseudobulb.

The cross looks very different from both parents and resembles a number of species in this genus like gladiatorium or barbatum. I would not guess that tigrinum and kleberianum would produce this cross. I found a cross on the SVO site Ctsm. Kleberbarb (Ctsm. barbatum x Ctsm. kleberianum) which resembles this candidate but has a fuller lip:

The candidate is an interesting looking flower with nice clear markings, but if the parents are correctly named I am not sure this is an improvement over the two and not sure this plant has had time to reach its potential. The bloom count on the single inflorescence is a low but may increase as the plant has time to mature.

Recommendations

I would suggest to the grower to confirm with Fred Clarke if this is indeed the cross named on the label and give this plant a chance to mature a little and flower again and see what it can do on the next bloom.

Thanks,

Deb

Phyllis Prestia (Accredited Judge, Pacific South Judging Center)

This cross is what you might expect from the the combination of both parents. Fred’s photo of kleberianum, which I’m assuming is a good representation, has 12 flowers and a very wide, yellow, fimbriated lip on one inflorescence. The sepals are quite long but curve forward and narrow considerably to a point, creating the impression of a wide natural spread.

Ctsm. tigrinum is considered a miniature flower. Fred’s best photos show the potential for a wide petal and full shape to the segments. The yellow flower is spotted brown. Segment size after viewing a number of flowers shows that the segment width can vary in width, with the potential for wide segments.

Considering the breeding, Russ Wood is a slightly larger flower than tigrinum, taking some of the larger size of kleberianum. It carries the yellow/ green-yellow coloring, yellow lip and spotting/blotching of its parents. The forward curving of the sepals on kleberianum have flattened. The narrow lip of tigrinum has widened. Considering the potential for wider segments from tigrinum, I would like to see some better width in segment size on Russ Wood.

Deb Boersma (Student Judge, Great Lakes Judging Center)

Catasetum Russ Wood

I really like this flower, it has overall fairly good form, flat and symmetrical, the lip has an interesting irregular fimbriate margin. As a primary hybrid it has the smaller lip like the tigrinum parent and the more upright petals from the kleberianum parent. It is the colour and the markings that really catch my eye. The yellow base colour with the nicely contrasting marron maculate pattern on the petals is wonderful and the pattern on the sepals is likewise pleasing. The solid yellow and cream colouration of the lip nicely contrast the rest of the patterned flower. Natural spread is slightly larger than the tigrinum parent but not as floriferous.

This is a first bloom seedling and I think that if it is grown on and displayed more flowers it would be a candidate for an AM award. At this point, I would nominate it for a quality award and score it at an HCC of 75-76.

Diana Kleiman (Accredited Judge, Northeast Judging Center)

As to this Catasetum Russ Wood; well grown and well bloomed.

However, it seems to have kept the shape of kleberianum, not the most desirable and lost its fabulous lip. On the other side it does not get any shape improvement from the tigrinum, but instead has that narrow denticulated lip. As a lover of this species I do admire the clear markings, and always happy to see new hybrids, but would not nominate this for an award.

I do hope to participate in this again until we can come back to in person/orchid judging.

Christian Carrillo (Accredited Judge, Northeast Judging Center)

Truly a novelty cross! The candidate has gained the intense spotting from Ctsm. kleberianum but has lost the richness of its yellow lip and sepals. It has also lost the charm of the lip from kleberianum. Yet, the candidate does not look like it suffers from the rolling speals that so characteristic of kleberianum.

Ctsm. tigrinum has marginally increased the fullness of the candidate's form and is dominate for the candidate's lip structure. Personally, I prefer the roundness and presentation of Ctsm. kleberianum's lip or the structure and charm of tigrinum's lip -- I don't find the melding of both lip forms an improvement here.

At this moment, I don't find the candidate a worthy enough improvement on either species to be pointed.

William Bottoms (Student Judge, Carolinas Judging Center)

Catasetum Russ Wood

Impressions:

I like the contrast of the pale chartreuse base color of the flowers and the oxblood markings - and the markings are clean and clear. The lip form is a charming combination of the two parents. I do wish that the petal and sepal form had taken more after the tigrinum parent; broader and making the presentation more full and round. I also wish that the richness of the yellow in the lip of the kleberianum parent wasn’t lost as much as it was. There are some exceptionally dark examples of the kleberianum parent online, but the ’SVO’ cultivar on the SVO website does not appear to be one of them. The ’SVO’ cultivar of the tigrinum parent also is quite pale. It is not easy to tell, but the photos of the reverse appear that the flowers may have some slight symmetry issues, nothing that couldn’t be pointed down. The flower count is just at (or slightly under) what would be expected from the parents.

Award(s):

I think that this grex is imminently awardable and this is a charming example with potential. I think if this were presented at a judging table I would score it somewhere in the low HCC range.

Will

Bob Winkley (Accredited Judge, Northeast Judging Center)

Good afternoon, Sergey -

Thank you for this lovely candidate which to my eye has many good things going for it. The arched inflorescence appears to be self-supporting and the flowers are well-arranged. Flower count for this first bloom seedling is good. The segments of the flowers seem to be held in the same plane and the well-marked sepals and petals are a nice contrast to the fascinatingly shaped, nearly concolor lip.

Reading the hybridizer's description on the SVO website it seems like this candidate is meeting a number of expectations. However, when I look at the pictures of the actual parents I am drawn to the beautifully shaped, pristinely colored, very full sepals and petals of Ctsm. tigrinum and the graceful presentation of the flowers on the inflorescence. For Ctsm. kleberianum, the broad, brightly colored lip is stunning and provides a strong contrast to the petals and sepals; for the few awarded hybrids involving this species this trait comes through very nicely. The candidate strongly resembles the Ctsm. kleberianum parent as far as the petals and sepals go, with the Ctsm. tigrinum flattening out and slightly broadening the petals. However, the latter species has significantly reduced the size and color saturation of the lip.

I do think this cross has great potential however I think at this time the candidate plant exhibits neither the grace of Ctsm. tigrinum nor the drama of Ctsm. kleberianum. Therefore I would not nominate it.

All the best -

Bob W.

Exhibitor - Carrie Buchman, NJ (Associate Judge, Northeast Judging Center)