Lycaste Cultivation Methods and Key Technical Points

Lycaste, also known as thin-leafed lycaste, is a perennial herbaceous plant in the genus Lycaste of the orchid family. The flowers are large, waxy, long-lasting, triangular in shape, and have a captivating fragrance.

How to grow Lycaste

Native species of Lycaste drop their leaves during the dry winter period. After new shoots emerge in spring, a nodeless flower stalk grows from the base of the pseudobulb, usually bearing a single flower at the tip (one flower per stalk). The flower shape is unique and elegant, with three broad sepals spreading in an equilateral triangle, and the central petals slightly rolled and closed together. The flowering period is late spring to early summer, and each flower can last 1~4 weeks.

Light intensity

Light requirements vary by variety. Too much light will sunburn the leaf surface or cause it to turn yellowish, while too little will reduce flowering or cause the plant to appear dark green. Normal leaves should be a bright green with a slight yellow tinge. Deciduous varieties need approximately 2000~4000 foot-candles of light, or should be grown in a 50~70% shaded environment; during pseudobulb development, stronger light is needed. Evergreen varieties have lower light intensity requirements, about 1500~2000 foot-candles, or should be cultivated under 60~80% shade. Lycaste leaves are large and thin and easily sunburned, so shading is necessary in spring, summer, and autumn, and they should be grown in a glass greenhouse with good air circulation and high humidity. In summer, moderate shading is usually used, and light shading at other times. When air circulation and humidity control are good and the plants are not sunburned, the higher the light intensity, the faster they grow and the more flowers they produce.

Temperature and humidity:

Many varieties from low-altitude areas, such as L. campbellii, L. powellii, and L. ciliata var. rossyi, have higher temperature requirements, above 18~20°C, and their cultivation environment is similar to that of Phalaenopsis. Deciduous Lycaste are native to mid-altitude monsoon foothills, have moderate temperature requirements, and can tolerate a wide temperature range, roughly between 10~35°C; their cultivation environment is similar to that of Cattleya. During the peak growth period in spring and summer, deciduous Lycaste need attention to humidity and high-temperature control. Winter is the dormancy period, and low temperatures will not cause damage. Evergreen Lycaste mainly come from higher-altitude areas and need a cooler environment, with night temperatures of 11~15°C and day temperatures of 18~25°C. During the growth stage, the maximum temperature must not exceed 27°C; although occasional temperatures above 27°C will not cause damage, they should still be avoided as much as possible. As for humidity, Lycaste like to grow in a 50~70% humid environment. Lycaste cultivated in greenhouses usually cannot be provided with a similar natural environment, but moving air helps growth, so using internal circulation fans to keep air moving over the leaf surface is beneficial for Lycaste cultivation.

Water

Winter is the dormancy period for deciduous Lycaste, and only a small amount of water or moisture is needed to prevent the pseudobulbs from shriveling, while exposure to a warm, humid environment in spring will start their growth. Evergreen Lycaste need to stay moist year-round, adjusting the watering frequency according to seasonal changes. When new shoots of Lycaste first begin to grow, their structure resembles a tube, and water easily collects at the tip. At this time, never water from above, because if water collects at the tip and the temperature rises, rot can easily occur during the new shoot's growth. High-altitude Lycaste are very sensitive to salts. If you are concerned that the water contains too much salt, it should first be desalinated before use, or you can use rainwater or water heavily at intervals to reduce the damage from salt accumulation in the growing medium. Lycaste seedlings have weak growth vigor. If grown in sphagnum moss, attention must be paid to water supply; once sphagnum moss dries out completely, it does not easily absorb water again. Using automatic sprinklers can easily cause excessive moisture or uneven wetness and dryness, so if growing in sphagnum moss, manual watering combined with liquid fertilizer is preferable. Those growing in bark, because of its good drainage, can use an automatic sprinkler system.

Fertilizer

When Lycaste are growing vigorously in summer, more fertilizer needs to be provided regularly; a fertilizer with an N-P-K ratio of 30-10-10 can be applied. In autumn, when the pseudobulbs swell, nitrogen fertilizer should be reduced, and a fertilizer with an N-P-K ratio of 10-30-20 can be used instead to promote flower bud formation (some varieties can be given heavy fertilizer or large amounts of organic fertilizer during cultivation, and slow-release fertilizers are also acceptable). In short, fertilizer use is related to the plant's growth rate. Usually in spring, a fertilizer with a higher nitrogen ratio is needed, but if applied year-round, a fertilizer with equal ratios of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium is also fine, and small amounts applied frequently is also a good fertilization method. If you consider applying heavy fertilizer, you must ensure that the growing medium stays moist; but if salt accumulation in the growing medium has reached a harmful concentration, the growing medium should be kept relatively dry. Because the water retained in the medium will contain a fairly high level of salts, which can easily damage the roots, you can use capillary water techniques such as bottom watering or drip irrigation to supply water to the plants, so that salts will not continue to accumulate, overcoming the harm of salt accumulation.

Precautions for Lycaste

For seedlings, fertilization is usually based on liquid fertilizer or slow-release fertilizer, because seedlings use little growing medium, while organic fertilizer is bulky and inconvenient to apply, and seedlings have weak growth vigor; if incompletely decomposed organic fertilizer is applied, they are prone to pests and diseases. For larger plants or flowering plants, large amounts of organic fertilizer can be applied; organic fertilizer is rich in organic matter, which benefits plant growth and does not cause fertilizer burn.