| First of all, orchids are shipped in pots every day and do not rot! I'm not sure why the e-bay vendor shipped bare root, or why he dried them out. This is not standard practice. I am sure that the stress of having the roots dried out for an extended period of time stressed the plants. It is not surprising that the dendrobium is losing its spike and the phal is losing a leaf. If your phal has 6 leaves, it can afford to lose one or a few as it recovers from the vendor's "care" and adapts to its new surroundings. The den should be fine, too, although it probably won't bloom until next year. When you get bare-root plants with dried out roots, it's always a good idea to soak the roots overnight (or longer) in water with a little SuperThrive before potting. The plants should be OK at 60 degrees, but it's a little on the low side for phals. With the low temperatures, you don't want to water too much. Every other day is probably too much even at warmer temperatures. I know there have been postings on this forum about using bamboo skewers to gauge when to water, so you might want to search for that thread and read it. It's better to underwater than overwater, especially right after repotting. Indirect light is fine for the phal year round. The den will need a bit more light to bloom, so you might want to think about putting it outside next summer. It should be OK where it is for now. If your phal has a spike, you may lose it, too, or you may want to remove it so that the plant can put all its energy into recovering and getting a good root system established. Good luck with your new orchids and welcome to the forum!  |