Candidate for this month is a Cattleya Zip (Cattleya tenebrosa 'None Darker' x Cattleya milleri 'Dr. Koopowitz Red' HCC/AOS). 

Cattleya Zip was originated and registered by Rod McLellan Co. in 1965. Both of these Cattleya species was previously know as Laelias and could be found in Brazil.

Previous Awards:

There are 6 AOS award for Cattleya Zip, including one from 1965. The latest award granted in 2021 by Pacific Central JC.

Description:

The candidate plant has 6 flowers on one 36-cm staked inflorescence plus 5 buds on second immature inflorescence. Plant is 57-cm wide by 30-cm tall and growing in 16-cm green plastic pot in bark mix. 

Flower Measurements:

NS H - 11.8 cm;                   NS V - 11.0 cm;

Dorsal Sep. W - 1.5 cm;    Dorsal Sep. L - 6.2 cm;

Petal W - 2.3 cm;               Petals L - 5.5 cm;

Lat/Sepal W - 1.5 cm;       Lat/Sepal L - 6.0 cm;

Lip/Pouch W - 2.5 cm;     Lip/Pouch L - 5.0 cm.

Judges' Comments

Ginna Plude (Accredited Judge, Northeast Judging Center)

An interesting outcome given the colors of the parents, seeming to get most of the form from tenebrosa but all the segment color, except for the lip, from milleri.  The general form of the candidate, given the tenebrosa parent is pretty good and the larger, brightly colored lip provides a nice contrast to the sepals and petals.  The flowering inflorescence looks like it might have been staked late, or that the stake was just too short because it loses some of the height being bent as it is.

The three most recent FQ awards for C. Zip have much higher flower/bud counts per inflorescence than our candidate.  Even the 2016 CCM has a higher average which, given that flower counts often dip a bit when there are a lot of inflorescences, also put our candidate at a disadvantage.  The overall spread is not far off from the average for the FQ awards but both the sepals and petals are a bit shorter than average.

Given the award history I would not be inclined to nominate the plant for scoring.  It looks to be a young plant so I would continue to grow it up to see if a higher flower count may be achieved.

Judie Armstrong (Associate Judge, Florida North-Central Judging Center)

This is a very pretty stellate flower.  Our candidate has six flowers and previous AM awards were to plants with 24 flowers in 2021, 15 flowers in 2019 and six flowers in 2016.  I did not find any data or pictures for the HCC award in 1965. There were two culture awards with 58 flowers and 66 flowers.  Even though the candidate is well grown, it is a young plant and has to grow more for a culture award.  

I had some issues with the form of the candidate flowers.   The petals have some undulation along the margins.  I feel these petals are better than the AM award in 2016 but not as good as the next two awards in 2019 and 2021.  The dorsal sepal of the candidate is upright and flat but not consist on all the flowers.  The petals and lateral sepals have reflexed margins.  

I do not have any issues with the color of the flower.  The red is vibrant and bright.  Normally, I would not think the color of the lip would go with the flower color but the flower has tones of orange and that works with purple lip. 

I reviewed the averages for size comparison and our candidate flower is slightly larges than the averages for width, but slightly smaller then the averages for height. The candidates lateral sepals are held more horizontal than vertical.  The previous awarded AMs the lateral sepals were held more vertical.  The lip of the candidate is larger than the previous three AM's.

At this time I would pass on awarding this plant.  I do not think it is elevating the flower quality above the previous awarded flowers. However, if this plant was in my collection I would not kick it out.  :)

Kris Mason (Accredited Judge, Cincinnati Judging Center)

Overall beautiful flowering.  Presentation of flowers on the inflorescence is nice.  The markings and color of the lip are wonderful and contrast nicely with the sepals and petals. I like the presentation of the lip.    Floriferousness is as expected.  Size a little low and segments are narrow.  Form of sepals is very nice, however petals have form issues especially when compared to awarded clones.  When pointed I was at 73 so possibly a low HCC.

Deb Jenson (Student Judge, Chicago Judging Center)

This is a really nice hybrid pulling the best traits from the two species; the large flowers and overall shape from tenebrosa with the flatter segments and brilliant red-orange color from milleri.

The overall form is balanced and symmetrical. The dorsal sepal edges are rolled proximally, but to be expected from the tenebrosa. The petals inferior is reflexed from the base through the medial, which would cause me to score lower on petal form. The lip is balanced, open, and appropriately sized, complementing the flower.

The color is spectacular, with the yellow base heavily overlaid with brilliant red-orange and faint red veins, making it eye-catching. The lip has great color with a white base and margins overlaid with magenta, offset by the yellow throat and magenta veining. I would score high for color.

The size is certainly appropriate and in line with the other Cattleya Zip awards, with the lip being exceptionally large. This plant, however, is not as floriferous as the other awards. The latest award scored an 85 with 24 flowers and 30 buds on 6 inflorescences.

I would nominate this and likely score this in the low AM range.

Mike Arwari (Student Judge, Pacific South Judging Center)

Candidate for this month is a Cattleya Zip (Cattleya tenebrosa 'None Darker' x Cattleya milleri 'Dr. Koopowitz Red' HCC/AOS). 

Cattleya Zip was originated and registered by Rod McLellan Co. in 1965. Both of these Cattleya species was previously know as Laelias and could be found in Brazil.

Previous Awards:

There are 6 AOS award for Cattleya Zip, including one from 1965. The latest award granted in 2021 by Pacific Central JC.

Description:

The candidate plant has 6 flowers on one 36-cm staked inflorescence plus 5 buds on second immature inflorescence. Plant is 57-cm wide by 30-cm tall and growing in 16-cm green plastic pot in bark mix. 

Flower Measurements:

NS H - 11.8 cm;                   NS V - 11.0 cm;

Dorsal Sep. W - 1.5 cm;    Dorsal Sep. L - 6.2 cm;

Petal W - 2.3 cm;               Petals L - 5.5 cm;

Lat/Sepal W - 1.5 cm;       Lat/Sepal L - 6.0 cm;

Lip/Pouch W - 2.5 cm;     Lip/Pouch L - 5.0 cm.

Six stellar flowers; petals and sepals lanceolate; petals have a distinct indentation on the each of the superior segments.; margins smooth; color is a dark red throughout; lip is flat and elongated; ruffled margin; cream in center; finely veined; veins extending from center to outer margins; column is white, bi lobed. Texture looks satiny.

Flower Assessment:

This is a beautiful, well grown specimen of Cattleya Zip. The large stellar flowers with its dark red color looks like a sunrise! It is especially pleasing to see how well each flower hold up! The sepals and petals stand out like a star burst. The measurements of our candidate measure favorably with the awarded plants, although this specimen in less floriferous. The plant awarded in 2025 had 24 flowers and 30 buds, compared to the 6 flowers and 5 buds of our plant. I am not aware of the age of this specific plant, but I have a strong feeling that it will meet its full potential as it ages. I would award this plant a HCC/AOS score of 79.

Wayne Wiegand (Accredited Judge, Northeast Judging Center)

This is a lovely flower. I find stary flowers lighter and airier than the Big Round Cattleyas with overlapping segments, and this one is quite a clever cross of two very different species. The results, in my opinion, captured the best of both. Great color, great size, nice arrangement, and beautiful lip. Registered in 1965 and as such has few awards under its belt.

This is quite an impressive plant with an interesting curve in its stem and a beautiful open arrangement of its big, bright flowers. As you draw closer to the individual flowers and then compare them to the two previous AMs, Red Velvet and Zinger, you start to see its positive and negative attributes.

As for the flower size, it is bigger than Zinger and slightly smaller than Red Velvet but rounder than Red Velvet. It is well proportioned. Its lip is, in my opinion, more beautiful than either, although it is lighter colored, that creates a better contrast with the rest of the flow. Plus, it lacks the prominent tongue, from the milleri parent, at the very tip of the lip. Its openness and roundness add to its beauty.

Then you look at the petals and note that the bottom half is rolled under and cannot be considered flat. This roll is consistent with that of Red Velvet. This is the most negative attribute of this flower. The web is ablaze with Cattleya Zip photos, mostly from Fred Clarke and they nearly all have flat petals. If you go to Zip on the Krull Smith website, the image is of a Zip with very flat broad petals, but it does lack the nice lip here. This rolling might well be considered sufficient to knock it out of contention since there is a high expectation for very flat segments in a modern cattleya.

All this points me to no award for this beautiful orchid, however, using the General Scale for stary cattleya and taking the max off for the petals, which might be harsh, I can get to a low to middle HCC.

Wayne

Josephine deBeaubien (Associate Judge, Pacific South Judging Center)

There are three awards from Brazil on OrchidWiz, and six awards on Orchid Pro. Our candidate plant has a lovely lip, nice color, and is of average size compared to the previous awards.  I would like to see the sepals and petals flatter and a bit wider. Searching Google, you can find photos that show this is possible. The flower count is a bit lower than the average AOS awards. However, the lip is spectacular, and the flower arrangement is quite nice. I can’t see a second inflorescence in any of the photos or the video. I would screen this candidate plant and ask the grower to bring it back on the next blooming.

Muthiah Vijayendran (Student Judge, Northeast Judging Center)

Flowers are vivid. Both sepals and petals appear like being carved out from clay in vinaceous satin finish. The pleasingly contrasting lip accents the near round form of the flower. The candidate is one of the good examples of selective breeding over the sixty-years of this primary hybrid’s first registration.  The color of the petals is a good combination of its Brazilian parents formerly known as Laelia tenebrosa and Laelia milleri. Cattleya tenebrosa is known for honey-like color variation from yellow to copper and was included in Laelia grandis after its discovery highlighting its flamboyance. The stellate flowers of Cattleya milleri are highly sought after for their vibrant red to magenta color palate unique to rupicolus varieties. Cattleya Zip is, therefore, generally a hybrid that demands attention. With six flowers in one staked inflorescence and five buds on another, this candidate is sufficiently floriferous to warrant consideration for a flower quality award. From OrchidPro, An AOS awarded Cattleya tenebrosa flower’s natural spreads are 18-cm (H) and 14-cm (V) and Cattleya milleri’s are about 5-cm for both. Considering the vast difference between these measurements, one can expect the resultant grex to have a smaller stature. OrchidPro lists three AM awarded plants with natural spreads ranging between 10.2-cm and 11.5-cm (H) and 10.5-cm and 13-cm (V). The candidate’s measurements are 11.8-cm (H) and 11-cm (V), fitting in within the ranges. Comparing also the form of each segment, color, and wholesomeness of this candidate’s flowers appears to indicate that it is worthy of a flower quality consideration like the others. However, there is a noticeable flaw in some segments that detracts: the rolling of the dorsal sepal and the recurving of the petals from the midrib, proximally. I would, therefore, score it from high HCC to low AM.

Paul Wetter (Senior Judge, West Palm Beach Judging Center)

Thank you for submitting this colorful and showy Cattleya Zip.  I like the plant because it an interesting cross between two strikingly colorful species.  It shows many of the good qualities of each parent. However, I would like to see wider Petals and more development of the lip from the tenebrosa parent.  I would not nominate for award at this blooming. Because of its striking color and interesting heritage it would be a nice addition to a collection. 

Best Regards

Paul 

Al Messina (Accredited Judge, Northeast Judging Center)

Six well-formed stellate flowers appear to have extracted the milleri color quite nicely and compare admirably with the prior six AOS awards.

The cross can produce a higher flower count which should be sought on future blooms. Fifty years ago, Rusty Cal averaged 9.

Should receive a high HCC, perhaps a low AM on this bloom. Next bloom, who knows.

Steve González-Costa (Accredited Judge, Chicago Judging Center)

Great primary hybrid, I had many of these in the past from multiple offerings – this is what fun orchid growing and blooming is all about. Before I compare any numbers, I would say that the traits imparted by these “purp” types, especially (Laelia) tenebrosa are difficult to ‘erase’, ‘improve’ or say ‘iron out’.  Someday we’ll find a perfect tenebrosa to breed with.  We have seen many tenebrosa attempts at our judging center and they are challenging.  But this is a fun plant to enjoy and looking at what I see and the positives I think, portrayed on these photos, that these flowers have the best brightest deep dark bright burgundy color and darker veining I have seen.  I am also a sucker for contrasts and the base color of lip being more white cream beats out yellow almost every time (sometimes the yellows are not as cheery bright).  The contrast and deep stripes are awesome.  Presentation is decent, but that spike has to be held straight as it emerges.  Flower count of 6 + 5 is decent and is less only to the ‘I’ AM 85.  Beyond that YES the flower is on the size range when compared to the only two flower quality contenders ‘I’ AM 85 and ‘Red Velvet’ 81.   Some are slightly wider, some are slightly shorter, but none of the differences are logarithmic in difference or magnitude (I compared the two AM’s line by line).  The rest of the flower is ok, sepals twist un-evenly, petal recurving a bit backwards (could be worse), lip is the usual tight vertical rectangular – must be milleri’s fault because we cannot blame tenebrosa for everything.  Again I think that the striping and mostly white contrast is phenomenal.  This plant has potential in the future and I decided to score it and not leave it behind – result is an 80 ±1 pt AM (or HCC the team fine tunes the end scrore).  I would also put a little more food (ah those anorexic purp’s……..) granular (that’s what I do) the plant will look stronger, be greener, and bloom hopefully much better to be upgraded.

One of my girls (my wife is from Brazil too like these 2 parents and this is what I call all my Brazil species from the Cattleya alliance) – she was from about 5 plants from the first SVO offering 100 years ago.

Virginia Kristo (Student Judge, Pacific Central Judging Center)

Cattleya Zip is a well grown plant with one mature inflorescence with six flowers and one immature inflorescence with 5 buds.  

In comparing this with other awarded plants, I am struck by the magnificent lip the candidate plant has.  The white/cream throat with the prominent magenta veins.  None of the awarded plants grab my attention in the same way.

Upon comparing measurements with the other awarded plants, its natural spread is comparable.  Cattleya Zip ‘Zinger’ is smaller, but it has three inflorescences and 15 flowers; more energy is being spent by the plant to produce more flowers.  In contrast, Cattleya Zip ‘Red Velvet’ is larger (vertically) and has only one inflorescence and 6 flowers.  More energy can be put into the fewer number of flowers that it has.

Cattleya milleri ‘Dr. Koopowitz Red’ is very floriferous with smaller flowers and a bright red color.  I found a picture of Cattleya tenebrosa ’None Darker’ and I can easily see where the candidate plant gets the beautiful lip with the prominent veins.

I would really like to see the plant with the second inflorescence fully bloomed.  However, in looking at the plant in front of me, I would recommend giving it a flower award.  Perhaps a high HCC or low AM.

Best Regards,

Virginia

Bob Winkley (Accredited Judge, Northeast Judging Center)

Thank you for sending along such a lovely candidate.

 What I find most striking about this flower is the intense, even color of the petals and sepals contrasted by that beautifully colored and patterned lip. It's interesting how the various light exposures change the intensity of the purple color around the margin of the lip, which I wish extended all the way to the apex of the lip, but nonetheless it is showy.

 The flower count per inflorescence is on the lower end of the award range but I think that's okay. Size of flower and segment measurements are also well within the range and expectations based on parents. Presentation appears to favor one side of the somewhat 'twisted' inflorescence which is a bit distracting.

 Where I get hung up is the form. The petals are reflexed along the lower margin, the lateral sepals appear to be reflexed on both the upper and lower margins, and the dorsal is heavily reflexed along the proximal margins. The two newer awards are exhibiting nice, flat petals, and the sepals of 'Zinger' are also quite flat, which tells me that we can expect better form from this cross, despite the issues that C. tenebrosa can bring to the table. 

 Personally, I would not be inclined to nominate it at this time. The plant looks a little stressed and that could be contributing to the form issues. Were the segments flatter, I could see nominating, scoring, and probably coming up with a low AM.  That said, if it were nominated I could see scoring it as a low HCC due to form.

All the best - 

 Bob W.

Jay Balchan (Associate Judge, Alamo Judging Center)

This is a fun plant to consider.  I love tenebrosa crosses and the rich colors it brings to its hybrids.  This is a really nice plant to have in your collection.

As for judging this display plant, there are not a lot of closeups on whole, individual flowers to be able to pick a specific flower to judge so I’ll just make more general comments.  

For color, the display plant is richly saturated in the sepals and petals, but venation (darker veins, lighter background) is definitely visible.  To me this is not the most pleasing.  The lighter lip color and clear veining is quite interesting to me and different than the prior awards where the lip is quite color saturated.  (I’ll make a note here that other than the most recent award, the prior award photos in OPro for this hybrid are quite poor, or missing entirely, and make comparisons to them difficult). 

For shape, in the petals, there are strong undulations and heavy recurving, along with a pronounced midrib in all the flowers.  The sepals look quite nice with little recurving.  The lip shape is nicely open and evenly ruffled in most of the flowers.  It is hard to compare this to prior awards given the poor award photos. 

Size is in line with the 3 prior recent flower quality awards. Substance and texture are hard to determine, so assume they are average. The rest of the points around arrangement, floriferousness and stem are all average or below IMO.   The stem is quite poor with the huge bow in it and most of the flowers are facing front with one looking backward.  Flower count on the blooming inflorescence is average. 

So overall, I would likely not nominate this and if someone else nominated it, I would likely not reach 75 points. 

Barbara Putko (Student Judge, Northeast Judging Center)

Cattleya Zip      

(Cattleya tenebrosa 'None Darker' x Cattleya milleri 'Dr. Koopowitz Red' HCC/AOS) – parents

Our candidate is a well grown plant with six vibrant crimson stellate flowers, trumpet lip, fuchsia fluted edges flowing to white basally, fuchsia longitudinal striations along the lip.  Looking at the inflorescence as it is staked, it looks a bit awkward with the ‘hump’ right before the first pedicle. When looking at the flowers, they are spaced around the plant.  Some of the dorsal sepals are straight or slight hooded forward.  Petals are straight, apices are recured to the backed, some are down-swept, also folded basally.  The lateral sepals straight and framing the lip.  The lip is straight, narrow and beautifully colored.

When I turn to the parents to see what improvements have been made, I can see the Cattleya tenebrosa heavily in the segments, narrowing and recurving to the back, along with the undulating of the lip. Cattleya millieri brings to the table the elongation and narrowing of the lip. Also, an increased flower count. The combination these two parents, we have the vibrant crimson color of the segments.

Looking at the latest award, Cattleya Zip ‘I’ AM/AOS 85 points from August 8, 2021, the natural spread 11.5cm wide /11.5 vertical, our candidate is just a bit smaller but there are other awards on record where our candidate is larger.  I like this candidate I would nominate it for a Flower award.

Barbara Putko

Student Judge, Northeast JC

Mariano Medda (Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Judge, Eric Young Orchid Foundation (EYOF) Specialist Orchid Grower, UK)

This Cattleya is gorgeous! I love the colour and the shape of the flowers. The inflorescence with open flowers looks strong enough and holds itself nicely but I would have liked to see both the inflorescences with most of their flowers fully open. The plant itself looks a little pale and possibly not in it's best form.

I am not able to compare it with previous awarded ones, or other ones in general, but one of my mentors used to tell me, when having to decide the worth of a plant, "ask yourself: would you buy this plant?" In this case I can say that I would love to own this plant and I think that it should at least get a preliminary recognition. The potential is there and a stronger plant would definitely be worthy of a top award.

Thank you so much for including me in this exercise.

Take care,

Mariano

Exhibitor - David and Joan Rosenfeld (Central Jersey Orchid Society,  NJ)

Virtual Award Description

Grower's Advice