My Phalaenopsis needs help!

[eluton]

I have had my Phalaenopsis orchid for over a year. About a month ago, I repotted it into a larger pot. I had read that after a year it is a good idea to do so. It has been thriving in its environment up until a couple weeks ago. I have a second spike with buds that are close to opening. The spike appears healthy as do the buds but the leaves have suddenly started to droop and have become a dark green with bits of dark purple along the edges. It has also become slightly wrinkled with the wrinkles running the length of the leaf. Help! I don't know what to do. I thought that I might have shocked the orchid after repotting but I am afraid to do anything that might make things work. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. This plant was given to me by my husband for Valentine's day. I had killed others and was so happy that this one was not only lived but has thrived until now.

[dipasquo]

Hello eluton and welcome. From my experience with Phals it seems like too might light/heat or a rare occasion of insufficient watering. Have you moved the location of this Phal? Have you changed your watering schedule? What type of medium did you repot the plant into?

As the days get longer and the sun gets hotter you may need to increase your watering schedule compared to the winter. As I understand it, most Phals don't like to get hot, direct sunlight - although I have several that get some direct light about 4-6 feet back from a window for a couple hours per day and they seem to have become accustomed to that. If you feel the leaves, they should not feel warm to the touch. The purple fringing can be a sign that you are at the upper limits of the plant's light tolerance.

The question about medium is important because different media drain and dry differently, affecting the necessary watering schedule. One way that Phals can become dehydrated is, counter-intuitively, by being over-watered. Roots that sit in wet medium can rot and are no longer able to store and conduct water; so the plant gets sick.

If you don't feel that you've under watered and you haven't suddenly exposed the Phal to much more light than it's used to, I'd suspect the roots. There may be varying opinions on this, but in another recent thread the consensus seemed to be that you can un-pot the plant to check the roots for their health, despite it being in spike, and with only some risk of losing the buds. If you're using a medium that's prone to stay wet (e.g. sphag moss) I would definitely suspect this. If you do find that you have root rot, you will have to clean them up and then decide whether to keep the spike or sacrifice it to avoid the risk of over-taxing the plant.

It'd be very helpful to know where you are located; you can update your profile with your location.

[mayres]

The preceding post was EXCELLENT. The leaf condition you describe indicates the plant is not getting water - which can be both due to under and overwatering. I have seen phals repotted in poor quality bark or bark that is large and not presoaked lead to this condition - underwatering/underwater retention of the media and thus underwater to the plant - even though the frequency may be what you had previously. Phals should be planted into a pot that you can just barely get the root mass back into. Overpotting usually leads to media that does not dry out adequately - root rot issues. You need to examine the root qualty ASAP as suggested. Potentially you may need to do some significant cleaning of the root mass and if severe might even need to consider removing the flower spike. What kind of media did you repot into. What kind of media did you repot into. Give us a little more information about what you find and other details. Good luck!

[eluton]

Thank you dipasquo and mayers. I took the orchid out of the pot and the roots are white and some look rotted. In fact, most of the roots are white. What do you suggest I do? When I repotted the orchid, I used the same medium (bark) that the orchid had been purchased in. How little root can an orchid have and still survive? As to your question, dipasquo, I am in Monroe, Washington which is at the base of the west side of the Cascades.

[jay]

If you have several white/green roots, then you are in good shape. As stated, it could be that the bark was not pre-soaked and thus not retaining the water for the roots to soak up. If this is the case then you may have to monitor it closely for a while and possibly water a little more frequently.

Dipasquo also said that with the increase in temps and longer daylight you may have to increase your watering. You could also use the skewer method to see when it is dry and needs watered.

[eluton]

I hadn't even considered the increase in daylight and temp. I think, given the response to my question, that my plant was repotted in too large a pot and was unable to soak up any water. I repotted it in a smaller pot and will monitor it to see if this helps. Anyone know how long it should take until any improvement is shown? Thanks again to you all. I have been at this orchid thing for a few years and have not had much success. Being able to correspond with other orchid enthusiasts and gaining insight and knowledge will hopefully up my success rate (:

[mayres]

It sounds like your bark was indeed not holding enough water to support your plant. When you water for the next few months consider soaking the entire pot/root mass in a larger container of water for awhile - 15-20 minutes or even longer. Eventually your bark should improve its retention and you can begin watering from the top only. You should start to see some improvement in as little as a few days to a week.

[dipasquo]

As I've been learning to take care of orchids, I've often heard that such and such "likes to be potbound" and I've always wondered how a plant is smart enough to know whether or not its roots were constrained by the pot that it was in. I tend to believe that "liking to be potbound" is synonymous with the risk of root rot associated with a high media-to-root ratio (if you will) where the roots sit in wet medium for too long, as mayres said above.

One of my "mini" Phals has a leaf that firms up and then goes limp so predictably through the course of a watering cycle that I have taken to watching it as an indicator of when I need to water. I'd suspect that I was underwatering (and may still be) except that the plant otherwise appears healthy and has grown slow but steadily since it's been in my care.

I'll keep up hope that your plant will rebound. Please give us a progress update sometime.

[eluton]

I will definitely soak my orchid when it is time to water. I am also going to water a tad more frequently given the increase in daylight and temp, albeit small. Although my experience is limited, I am going to make an educated guess and conclude that it was the too large pot and the inability of the bark to retain the moisture needed for my plant. I'll give it a few days, soak it, and give you all an update as to its (hopeful) progress.
Thanks a million!

[eluton]

First off, I apologize for this post appearing so long after the last. As for my orchid, it has rebounded. The leaves lost their "wrinkliness" and although the leaves still droop, it isn't as bad and they seem healthy otherwise. I repotted my orchid in a smaller pot and altered my watering by soaking the bark medium for about 20 minutes rather than simply pouring water over it. I also moved the orchid from where it had "lived" for the six months prior. I moved it upstairs to a window that receives more indirect light (but still from the East) and the plant seems to like it there. Specifically, I placed it near the window that is above our bathtub in our master bath. The tub is on the opposite side of the room from the shower so I was wondering if the humidity created by shower use helped it along, so to speak.
Again, thank you for those who gave their input. Greatly appreciated!

[berkeleysgr8]

With the regular soaking of the plant, you'll probably find that the condition continues to improve. Consider the fact that the old medium it was planted in was probably broken down and thus, retained more moisture. I'm glad to hear that the situation has improved!!!

[jay]

Congrats on pulling your phal through. I look forward to it's first re-bloom. Keep us updated.

[eluton]

The current bloom is the second and the most frustrating aspect of the sudden downturn in the condition of the phal was that it was just getting its second bloom. I had others that I had, uh, expired before they had a chance to rebloom. So, as I was basking in my success, I was thrown for a loop. Ah well. All is well now.