Gold Toile Phalaenopsis Orchid & Care

[isabella]

Just got this orchid for a present and the leaves are yellowing...What can I do to "save" this plant?

Isabella

a few questions: when did you get it? what leaves are yellowing? what is it potted in? how many times have you watered it this week? how much sun is it getting? that should help pin down the problem. thanks

[isabella]

From FTD on Wednesday.....Lower leaves only...Prepotted in Florist stuff? Not sure but I was reading about bark etc.-Should I re pot? Light sun only-Ideas would be so appreciated-It is beatiful just sick!

[mayres]

There are many great places on the internet to read about how to care for phalaenopsis. Will just tackle the yellow leaf question to start with. If you have only had the plant for a few days the problem may have occurred before you took possesion. In my experience the fastest way to kill one of these plants is to give it too much sun. If the leaves are getting warm (feel them) - too much sun. Usually if only the bottom leaves are turning yellow this is the natural progression of life for a phal - the bottom leaf or two turn yellow and drop which coincides with another leaf or two growing out the top. So your phal should maintain a healthy 6-8 leaves at all times. Normally you don't have to repot a new orchid for a year or two unless it comes in a media type that is not good for you personally. For example folks who tend to overwater should probably plant in something fairly porous like bark while the people who are "pros" tend to like sphag or peat mixes. Lots and lots of options. There is not right way to do it. The majority of phals or killed by overwatering - the roots will rot very quickly if they stay too wet. Good luck.
mike

[jerrymeola]

I am going to take some guesses to get you started. It is difficult to diagnose anything without seeing the plant, but I have seen lots like this and can give you some guidance.

Since it came from a florist by FDT, expect it to have been sold as the equivalent of a cut flower with no intention of your being able to keep it alive. I am starting to see these delivered with a care card that says to discard the plant after the flower dies and buy a new one.

The florist did their best to make the plant attractive for a gift. This usually means they placed the plastic orchid pot into a larger pot covered with decorative toppings. Many times they put other tropical vines and bromileads in the same pot.

An orchid needs air to circulate around the roots and this potting suffocates the plant. Remove it from the decorative pot. You will probably find it is in another smaller pot usually a 4 inch pot. This pot came from the grower and is probably sufficient to keep the plant alive.

The decorative pot usually has no drainage so that you do not get water on your table. The standing water in the pot will rot the roots. Another reason to get it out of the pot. If you find water here, allow the plant to dry well before watering again, probably a week to ten days.

Either the lack of air on the roots or the standing water in the pot is accelerating the yellowing of the leaves. Old Phal leaves die but my guess is that it is too fast.

After it is dried out you can start watering again by top watering and allowing the excess water to drain out of the pot. Indoors watering will probably be about every 4-10 days depending on the humidity of your home. Normally you do not want Phals to dry out completely but when they are over watered, I find it is a good first step.

If the decorative pot is large enough to allow air to circulate around the smaller pot (at least an inch), you can place it back into this pot after the plant has drained. This is only for looks.

As an aside to others - when giving an orchid as a gift try to make sure it is being delivered by an orchid nursery rather than a florist. Most nurseries will ship a gift direct for you along with care instructions for the recipient, and if local the recipient can visit the nursery for further instructions.