Hi, Kate,

Orchids can vary as to when they are fragrant. There are varieties (like
Brassavola nodosa) which are fragrant only in the evening, for example. So,
try sniffing at different times of the day, for starters.

I don't pretend to understand the science behind this, but I find that my
fragrant orchids are less so when they are in the house, so that might be
another consideration.

About those dried sheaths: some Cattleyas develop more than one sheath, so
never take off the ones that look dry unless you are absolutely certain that
they are done for.

Diana

"Kate" wrote in message
...
When I bought the plant last year (from a garden centre, so variety
unknown) its flowers were very sweetly scented. To my delight, I have
managed to flower it again, and the first two flowers have just opened,
but they have no scent. Shouldn`t they smell immediately on opening? I
noticed the same with a zygopetalum : scented when I bought it, but not
any more. Maybe it`s me, although my husband cannot smell them either.

Incidentally, when the flower spikes were just beginning to show at the
top of the canes (pseudobulbs?) on the cattleya, they were green. Then
they turned brown and I thought that they had rotted. I was going to
pull them out with tweezers, in case they caused the canes to rot, but,
fortunately, I didn`t do it straightaway, because the brown sheaths
split and the buds appeared. Didn`t know that. Do now!

Thanks
Kate