Yellowing Phal Leaves

[Woods]

Hello everyone,

The leaves on one of my phals have started to change colour and are now very yellow!!! I am assuming this is due to too much sunlight and have moved it to a room that has sunlight only in the morning. Does that sound about right?

Can anyone tell me where the thread on keeping records on watering times is? I can't find it anywehre.

Thanks

A

[Aniko]

Please be more explicit: all the leaves? the oldest? the last one? A pic would help.
Anyway, Phals don't like high levels of light, I mean over 1500 foot candles.
Usually, they are kept away from direct sunlight.
The skewer method's link is here:
http://www.orchidgeeks.com/forum/newbie-questions/1099-skewer-use-for-watering-of-orchids.html
The watering schedule has to be established by you, in relation of your local conditions.

[mayres]

I left my first phal in a NE window when I went home for the weekend (at work) and when I came back to work on Monday all the leaves were turning yellow. Yep! Too much sun all at once. Hope yours turns out better than mine - it continued to yellow until it was totally brown - even though I moved it to a safe place. This taught me to keep phals out of the direct sunshine - no more phals in the window! My second phal I kept out of the window but off to the side of the window - about two feet away. I only burned two leaves off of that one! Hence I have learned a lesson. Keep em away from the windows! I now have about 30 phals and over half of them are reblooming for me and NONE are by the windows.........In theory they should be able to take a few hours of early morning or late afternoon sun - but other factors will play into that theory as well - like indoor temperature, air movement, humidity, etc. Best policy is indirect lighting only. Good luck - mike

[robb]

just some personal experience here...

i have 4 phals (all quite sickly when i got them from Home Depot, wilting, rotten roots, packed in sphag and styrofoam peanuts, soaking wet) and they are on a N-NE facing window. they receive approximately the first 1.5 hrs of sunlight in a day, then just window light. i have been watering them with alternating worm tea and straight water, and they are looking a lot better (still no idea if they will live or not). no leaves have turned yellow, instead they are picking up their leaves!

[Woods]

Hi,
I have two phals which have been in different rooms. I have moved the one the one with yellowing leaves next to the healthy looking one. After reading the messages I have now moved both of them away from the window. It might be my imagination but it does seem less yellow than it was. I will keep you all posted on what happens - keep your fingers crossed!

A

Aniko - thanks for your info. I have the info on skewers for watering - I was looking for the strand about recording when you water... some people were posting their log sheets. Anyone know where this strand is?

[E-Jag]

All 3 of my phals live on my back balcony - tons of indirect light, no direct sun, temperatures in the 90's and I water them twice a week. They look teriffic and bloom like crazy. I use worm tea on them once a week.

E-Jag

[Woods]

Here are 2 photos of my phal. The leaf is much more yellow than brown... it must be the light of the camera affecting the colour. However, there is an orange tinge to the leaf. I am also a bit worried about the roots at the top of the pot - they seem really dry to me. Is that OK or is there something I should do?

I am using a skewer to help with watering but the phal in the photo seems to dry out quickly (within 1 week). There are buds and it is flowering so that might have something to do with it. I have another phal (in bloom) which seems to hold water for longer (almost 2 weeks) and all the roots are inside the pot (except for a few root tips). Is this difference normal?

Any advice will be much appreciated.
A

[chefatplay]

Woods, the roots on top are arial roots and many times will dry out without affecting the plant. The roots in the culture are the important ones. The leaf in question looks like a newer one and looks as if:
1. It might have gotten too much sun
2. You might have a bit of root rot
3. Too much water

You need to take your plant out and see how the roots in the pot look. You may need to remove the rotted roots and put back in the pot with additional culture if needed.

However, I need the more experienced geeks to tell you if you should do this now or when the blooms are all gone.

I would move to an indirect light area and put a bamboo skewer in it now. Cynthia Prescott's skewer method has proven fail safe with me. I water about once a week for my phals and oncid. The skewer tells me when it's time.

More experienced geeks, please elaborate for me.

[kmarch]

I think, if this plant were mine, I'd not worry too much about the leaf and concentrate on giving good Phal culture. The plant's roots look dehydrated. I'd try to keep the mix evenly and gently moist, maybe mist the roots, whatever works given your conditions and watering proclivities.

Good luck and keep us apprised of your outcome.

[Woods]

Thanks for the words of wisdom.

I am using the skewer to help me water but it never seems to get wet in this plant. As a result, I have been feeling that the chips in the pot are too loose and not really holding water but am a bit scared to repot and especially to use a new mix. I'll try misting the top roots in the morning and see how that goes.

It's in a clear pot and I can see the roots in the pot - some are like the top roots and others are green. If I get an idiotproof guide to repotting I might give it a go if the misting doesn't work out for me.

Will let you know what happens.
A

PS - All leaves are yellowing (new and old) I think only one was in the photo

[Julie_M]

Too much sun generally doesn't translate into yellow leaves. Too much light will lighten the leaves over time, turning them a light chartreuse green and there might be a reddish tinge, or purple for leaves that are naturally darker. This is not necessarily bad, as more light generally translates into more and better flowers. A quick localized sunburn would translate into a dark spot on the leaf, like a lesion, that does not spread once the plant is in lower light and does not turn mushy.

If the lower leaves turn yellow, starting with the tips, this is perfectly normal, as Phals generally have 5 or so leaves at one time.

When the yellow starts from the crown or the middle, and this is not limited to the lower leaves, odds are pretty darn good that you've got rot. Add that to the rest of the leaves now yellowing and what I could see on your pictures, I can pretty much guarantee that you have crown rot. I don't think you can avoid repotting if you want to have any chance of saving your plant. Cut off the spikes and stick them in water; they'll last as cut flowers for a good week or so, maybe more if you're lucky. (I know this will really hurt, especially since there are so many spikes and the flowers are quite cute, but...) Repot and cut off all the dead roots. You could instead "sphag and bag" if you wish. And treat with a fungicide all over the plant and roots. I like Physan, but have also used a rose fungicide (Funginex) available from my local hardware store, which worked well enough. Stick the plant in a moderately warm place, bright (but not too, too bright) and cross your fingers. And be sure to avoid letting water stand in the crown of the plant (where the leaves meet), especially overnight.

Good luck.

Julie

[Woods]

Julie - Thanks for the advice. I'll wait a few days and see if the yellowing progresses. It looks to me like the leaves are returning to green but it might just be the light in the new location.

KMarch - The misting seems to have helped the plant hold some water or so the skewer tells me!

PS - what does a rotted root look like? Anyone got any pics?

[kmarch]

Originally Posted by Woods

PS - what does a rotted root look like? Anyone got any pics?

It will probably look grey or black, but another key indicator is that it will feel mushy and will give way if gently tugged. A good root will feel firm and will not give if gently tugged.

[Woods]

The roots at the top feel very firm - almost twig like. Even the small black sections on a few roots are very firm and definately not mushy. The roots in the pot (clear pot) are mostly green and plump looking.

I'm not convinced it is crown rot. The yellowing is not coming from the crown but the middle of the leaf and I probably should have mentioned it started as almost red like. The discolouring does not seem to be spreading since I moved it away from the window.

A

[Aniko]

The roots are fine - so don't worry.When it's time to water soak the whole pot for about 15 minutes, than flush with running water.This way the bark will be able to absorb more water and the excess of salts get washed away.
I think the leaf was burned a bit, but this will not affect the future life of your plant.

[Woods]

Thanks Aniko. More questions.... what do you mean by soaking it? Should I sit it in water for 5 mins then run water through it? I don't use fertilizer - should I be?

A

[Aniko]

Yes, you should sit in water even longer, 15 minutes at least, than run water through it.This is a common practice and really effective, especially when the bark is new. As it gets older, starts to be more and more spongy.
Of course you should begin to use fertilizer because the medium is very poor in nutrients.Phals need to be continuously feed since they don't have dormant period: when stop blooming, start to develop roots and new leaves.

Orchids grow slowly compared to other plants so they need less food than others.The usual recipe is a balanced fertilizer (which means that all the components are about in the same %.) like 10-10-10, or 20-20-20, or an "orchid food".
1/4 tbs in a gallon of water is OK, used at every other watering.
Some growers use it at every watering.

[Woods]

Thanks for the info. Have just noticed you said 15 mins in original message - doh! Will soak it at the next watering. I'll pick up fertilizer to use too.
A

[DDS2007]

aniko , did you mean 1 teaspoon of fertalizer for gallon ? or did u REALLY mean 1/4?

cuz i have read somewhere else that u should fertalize with 1 teaspoon per galon

thanks a lot aniko

[Aniko]

Sorry - corrected!

[jerrymeola]

I started to say that yellow leaves were not from sun but looking at the photos they look more brown and only on the center of the leaf, the normal look of burn on a Phal.

Dry twig type roots on the surface are dead, but not an indication of a bad plant. Roots grow out looking for water and food and die off when they fail to get what the plant needs or if other roots are doing a better job.

Orchids loose lots of roots every year and it is not a problem as long as they are replaced with new healthy roots.

DDS2007 and Aniko

fertilizer is one tablespoon TBS per gallon for tropical plants and 1/4 to 1/2 that amount for orchids - just about 1 teaspoon

[Aniko]

Jerry thanks for intervention.
I'm confused a bit by these American units, and I'm sorry if I made somebody else confused.
On the other hand on my orchid food label is written 1/4 tsp .

[Woods]

Jerry - should I do anything about the dead roots or just leave them?

A

[Woods]

Hi everyone.
Just wanted to pass on the news that all is looking well. I followed advice from Aniko and soaked the plant. It is now holding water for much longer and the top roots turned green!!!! The final bud is just opening and the plant looks fab. The roots inside the clear pot look nice, plump and green!

Thanks for all the advice!
A

[Aniko]

I'm glad to hear the good news.
Since I'm a beginner, too, with some experience, I know the feeling of being uncertain sometimes.
It's a great relief when somebody try to help.