Well! Here they are. Seedlings of a cross between Cattleya Zip (4n) and Encyclia alata 'Kingfisher'. Genuinely two of my favourite plants. Cattleya Zip has the most amazing red colour that I just can't quite capture satisfactorily with my camera. It has a real presence and wow factor. This Encyclia alata is a really impressive specimen It's a bronzey chocolatey brown with a hint of red in it, with a yellow centre. A big plant with branched spikes.
I made this cross way back in November 2021. It spent about a year in seedpod, a year in flask, and now after a year in a pot they're finally ready to sell. Along that entire journey I have been ridiculously excited about the potential of this cross, and I have been telling anyone who cares to listen. Customers, family members, friends, other nursery owners - I'm pretty sure they're all sick of hearing about it. But I can't help myself - I really think this has the potential to be fantastic. Great rich colour, the potential for a quite high flower count, and good robust plants. They're favouring the Encyclia in terms of growth habit.
First photo shows the parents. 2nd and 3rd show the size of the plants for sale. They're established in 80mm pots.