where did my post go ????

[Janet]

Hello ! I just finished writing a lengthy discription of my orchid and wanting to know if I should or could repot while the phal. is in bloom. When looking at the smilie faces on the right side, I clicked on 'more' and my whole message disappeared ! Is there any way it can be retrieved ????? I would rather not start all over again. Thank you ! Janet

[patticake]

Hi! "More" is usually just another selection of emoticons. -I've never had my message disappear! I don't know what to say, except maybe Fred can help!?
Welcome, Janet - anyway!!!
Be patient- Someone will help!

[made4engineering]

Sorry you will probably never see it again.. Anyways, repotting while in bloom may cause it to lose flowers prematurely.. so I hear. I dont pot my orchids.

[solay]

Yup. I hate that. It usually happens to me with e-mails. So frustrating! Sorry.

[Janet]

Hi ! This is Janet again and I will try to start over with my concerns about my noid Phal. orchid which I have had since February 2007. On November 28 my first and only spike appeared and by March 15 It had 5 blooms/flowers and very healthy, growing on a windowsill. While the spike was growing a new leaf was also growing and it finally made it to full size. Also, there was the beginning of a new root and also a root that is about 2 1/2" long. There appears to be two tiny buds at the end of the spike. All growth has come to a standstill .... about 2 months. This morning I found that the second bloom has wilted. I think that the bark medium has deterioted and feels almost mushy when I stick a skewer in to check for dampness. It stays slightly damp for two weeks or so. My question is should I repot now ? Would it stimulate the root growth and also the buds. I would probably risk loosing the flowers but don't really want to cut the spike off unless necessary.
There is also a root about 5 1/2" long that has grown out and over the ceramic orchid pot. It has been there for several months. If I repot, do I soak the longer root to soften it and put it down in the medium ? I know this is quite lengthy and I do hope someone can help !!!!! This is my first Phal. and want to do what is right for it. Thanks in advance, Janet

[JLu]

If in doubt..repot. It should not hurt your blooms if you are careful. Regardless, you need to make sure it lives to bloom another day. Rotten medium equals soon to be dead roots equals good bye plant.

[janet_a]

what JLu said.

[Janet]

Thanks janet a but I certainly don't 'get' your reply !!!!!!!!

[Janet]

Thank you, JLu ! I'm ready to repot and your reply does make a lot of sense. Started soaking new medium yesterday so I'm ready to go. Question: should I try to put all of the roots down into the new medium ????? Do I soak the roots first to soften them ?
Thanks again, Janet

[Brooke]

If I can get aerial roots into the media without damaging them, I put them in the pot. In the pot, they are not reliant on humidity to continue to grow.

Soak the root in tepid fertilizer water to make it pliable before placing it in the pot.

Brooke

[JLu]

Brooke knows, she does the repotting. I'm just a GH mechanic/electrician. Brooke also thinks like a plant.

I find myself sometimes thinking like a GH mechanic. In other words if it won't fit get a bigger hammer. If it ain't broke, don't break it trying to improve it. If it's soggy, almost anything you do is better than that. KISS stuff like that. A lot of times people try to make this too complicated.

[Janet]

Hey, my orchid has been repotted and I hope it does well. There were many dead or half dead roots and a lot of mush. So glad I went ahead an repotted. Otherwise, it would have died of root rot. I was not able to put the roots in the medium because of fear of breaking them. Hopefully, they will do fine as they were.
Many thanks again for all of your good information ! Janet

[Janet]

TO FRED: Thank you for your private message ! Unfortunately, I was not able to figure out how to reply to it ! So sorry.....hopefully I will soon figure out how to navigate this site. I re-composed my question and have received the help I was hoping for. Thank you ! Janet