Hi all! I am a new member who has been growing orchids outside for years, mostly dendrobiums, oncidiums, and catts. My dad has lots of phals that he grows outside (we live in SW FL) but whenever I try it, they die, die, die. Unfortunately, everytime I've attempted keeping one as a houseplant, I fail miserably
Here are some of my greatest hits!
1.) floppy leaves
2.) Central AC which I am convinced is a death sentence for these in my house, as I have vents everywhere
3.) root rot and crown rot even though I water sparingly enough and avoid getting the leaves wet (apparently not well enough)
4.) the flower bulbs at the tips of the stalks drying up and falling off
It makes me sad! My outside plants do very well, I have a really nice catt and a native FL terrestrial about to flower right now. My dens and vandas are kinda sleepy, but I expect them to start going nuts soon enough. And I can't seem to keep my oncidiums from turning into monsters, which is a good thing! Any advice on keeping my phals alive would be much appreciated. I just picked up 3 today at Home Depot...they received a shipment a few days ago and I got great prices on them (11$ a piece!) Each one has at least 20 flower bulbs on it, with some just barely opening. 2 minis and 1 regular. I'd also like to try my hand at some ladyslippers (I've murdered a few of these, and they are a little pricey, so I'd like to keep some easier, cheaper friends alive before taking a crack at them again)
Thanks!