Should I cut these canes?

[Sharyn]

This is a den. that I received frozen last month. I've been trying to save it but have now lost all the leaves as of a few days ago. I noticed the two tallest canes appear to be cold to the touch and a little soft. The bark is still a little damp per the skewer.

Jerry, I've left them alone to acclimate to my house and haven't watered since I got it. I know it's not dead, just needs some kind of help right now. We've had some pretty cold weather here in Chicagoland, mostly high teens, but going down to single digits this coming week. Have 2 humidifiers going and keeping this plant a bit away from the high light that it needs. It's been difficult keeping the house at a steady temperature - it seems to run between 67 - 72 during the day. It's the best I can provide right now

Cynthia, you advised me to watch for soft spots. The picture may not be clear enough, but the upper 5-6 nodes are soft and cold, but not mushy. If I cut them back, where should I cut them - just below the soft area, or all the way back to the bark? I've inspected the roots without disturbing them too much. There does not appear to be any rot or soft spots.

I took it out of the pot (3 1/2" pot) so you may see the roots. At my limited experience level, they look ok, although a bit cramped.

I'd really appreciate some advice.

[jerrymeola]

It is definitely not growing at this point. As many roots as you have they will not be the ones the plant will use for growth. If it is to make it the plant will start putting out new roots in the next couple of months.

I would give it a good soaking in SuperThrive or Worm Tea to stimulate the roots and then go to almost dry before watering again. You do not want to totally dry it out at this point.

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[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

If these canes are not wet/mushy, leave them alone. If a portion of the cane just goes shriveled dry, it can be cut down to the bottom of the dried cane, but not into live material. If the canes have wet/mushy sections, then you would cut into healthy tissue by about 1/2 to 1 inch. But if it is not wet mushy, there is no hurry to do anything. The plant looks fine to me, just dormant. Well Jerry says almost dry before watering, and I say completely dry. So something between the two, if you can split the difference is probably just fine too.

[Sharyn]

Thanks so much for the advice. I soaked in SuperThrive this morning and I'll keep an eye on these canes.

I'm so glad that I found this forum. You and the other experienced growers lend us beginners such valuable information and help that will guide us through the orchid learning process. Keep up the good work!

If you find that the canes are shrivelling too much, you can mist them, and still leave the medium dry.