What should I do?

[Yan]

I posted the question in Introduction board, but maybe here is a better place.

I am in Michigan. I have a white moth orchid, which gets problem. I reportted twice recently. (Sorry for doing that.) It had 12 flowers, now 6 left. 3 buds turned yellow and dropped without blooming. I've lost 2 leafs.

Anyway, after the 2nd repotting,a lot of roots turn soft and bad. After reading a lot recently, I thought maybe I over-watered.

Question is:
Should I cut the flower stem now? There are still a few nice flowers. The stem seems to be strong.

Should I try to plant it in the clay balls? The roots are indeed not in good shape. I dare not watering for more than a week till now.

Sorry for asking so many questions. Any suggestion is highly appreciated

[kid a]

If you think you might loose more leaves and roots and if the plant is not healthy I think it would be better to cut the spike off to let the plant use up that energy. You can always put the spike in water the flowers may last for a few days longer. Do you have a picture you can post? you can post as an attachment that we can have a good look at it. What kind of mix or medium is it potted in right now? Welcome to the forum if I didn't already say that in the intro thread.

[Yan]

Thanks a lot, Kid a.
I have the pictures which I took when it lost the first leaf as shown below.



Currently, the root looks like below:


Many thanks for looking into the problem with my orchid.

[solay]

Looks like you have it in moss. Moss can be a problem since it holds too much water. Most here use a bark mix instead. You might try that to prevent root rot.

Then also find a thread on "skewer watering method" that will help know when to water your orchids.

[Yan]

Hi Solay,
Thanks a lot for your suggestions. Will read the thread now.
Most likely, I'll try cut the stem and repotting the orchid. Hopefully it'll survive.

[Yan]

Checked the roots, so sad. Only a couple of un-rotten ones left. Cut the flower stem completely and cut one more leaf since the very end turned black too. Cleaned the rotten roots and repot in clay balls. Hopefully it'll recover.

So sad for the orchid. I almost killed it.

Cross my fingers, hopefully it'll recover. //sigh..

[kid a]

Phals are good at making recoveries, as long as you give it some tlc from here on out it will be ok! I almost lost one of mine a about a year ago not realizing the roots were rotting in sphagnum moss. I call it my recovery Phal, lol! It established a new root system and grew two new leaves since the repot.

Just make sure with the clay balls that thewater is wicking because without a resevior at the bottom it is sometimes difficult to retain water If you notice the roots that are left are dry and cracking try another medium. Phals do very well in clay balls good luck!

[chickita]

Hellow & welcome 2 this forum, I 2 have a sick dieing orkid maybe u can help me & give me some advise like about thoughs clay balls i have no idea what there 4, what they do or how 2 use them i'm on this page, Introductions & care cultivation.

well, welcome Chickita,

[Orchidementia]

Originally Posted by Yan

Checked the roots, so sad. Only a couple of un-rotten ones left. Cut the flower stem completely and cut one more leaf since the very end turned black too. Cleaned the rotten roots and repot in clay balls. Hopefully it'll recover.

So sad for the orchid. I almost killed it.

Cross my fingers, hopefully it'll recover. //sigh..

I'm sure it will. I nearly killed my first phal by doing everything wrong to it and it refused to die. Once I figured out what it wanted (mostly less light and more water), it started to thrive.

[Steve B]

Dear Yan,

I am sure there are more qualified experts on here that I am, but I live only a couple of hour north of you (so my condition as similar) and I grow a couple phals., so here are my experiences in a nut shell.

for phals.
1) Moss kills (for most amateurs). Get rid of it. Make sure you get rid of it all. Use tweezers if you have to, to get it from the center of the root mass.

2) Be patient. I suggest you put your phal. into a bark mix. (ex. shultz orchid mixz, should be available at home depot) and water it using the skewer method. If most of your roots are gone, as it seems, then you might be in for the long haul and it might not be worth the effort. This depends on you.

3) Make sure the pot you are using is the right size. If it is too large, then you will suffocate the existing roots. The pot should be big enough to just accommodate the roots. I often rotate my orchid into it's home, then fill around it. Don't be afraid to down size.

Hopefully this helps a little.
Steve.

[kid a]

Originally Posted by chickita

Hellow & welcome 2 this forum, I 2 have a sick dieing orkid maybe u can help me & give me some advise like about thoughs clay balls i have no idea what there 4, what they do or how 2 use them i'm on this page, Introductions & care cultivation.

well, welcome Chickita,

Phals do good in clay balls. I would suggest reading through the threads about s/h (semi hydroponics). S/H method explained

Or if you decide to go with something other than s/h try a bark mixture. You can usually find premixed orchid mediums like schultz and others at Wally World, Lowe's, Home depot, almost any garden store. The most important thing is basically to provide its culture needs. This might help AOS | Phalaenopsis

[Ron]

Hi.
I might add my 2 cents worth to the spag problem.
I have used it in my early attempts to grow Phallies.
BECAUSE at the club meets the so called expert growers SAID so.
They can afford to run the heat at 25 Deg + all year
I can not and run it as low as 16 deg in winter, THAT is my problem Too cold for wet spag and Phallie roots.
I moved all the Phallies out of live spag into just 15 mm pine bark , NO additives needed adding.
results for me were outstanding.
See photo after about 3 months or so of growth after repotting. Also bonus flower spike
I can water more often without creating problems.
Hope it helps you to work out a method suited to you and your growing conditions.
Cheerio
Ron

[myorchid]

I agree with Ron, my Phals do not do well with sphag. I have one growing in bark and it is doing great, and I have put the others on coir with perilite and that works very well. I water when the pot is very light.
Phals are putting out new growth and flowers!

It is just what works for your area, you will find with your Phal wants.

[brookn]

Well, I have Phals in sphag and bark. Some Phals hate it some love it. I generally am an underwaterer, so that's probably why it works for me, keeps them hydrated longer. I do know that my species Phals like it a lot. It takes care to learn how to use it correctly.

I would like to point out, that changing to bark from sphag, you are going to have to water more often than you would with sphag. I do strongly suggest the skewer method, as the problem you might have had with sphag was not letting the medium dry enough to the center before watering again. It also could have happened where you bought it, as most places douse the Phals until they are a soggy mess. Good luck and welcome to the board.

[Christina]

Hey Yan! I too am ahving the same problem. I know you posted in order to recieve some helpful suggestions, but i thought it would make you feel better to know that youre not alone right now! I just repotted my moth phal, which is also white. And I repotted twice too. And now i am contemplating whether or not to cut the spike. My flowers are falling off and my leaves aren't looking to great.

I repotted my phal because I noticed that there were a couple of dark brown and soggy roots (possibly due to watering too much especially with sphagnum moss -- but i learnt my lesson). So, after a lot of reading, I came to the conclusion that repotting my phal would probably be best for it even if it was while it was still in bloom. I read that phals are very forgiving and tend to thrive on new media..nso i repotted! I tryed a bark and charcole mix and after a few days, it always felt and looked dry, so I repotted a second time and placed it in fresh moss beacuse i can judge when to water them better in that.

Well, so much for helping my phal out! Now, my once beautiful white flowers are drying up and falling off! I have posted threads on whether or no i should cut the spike and a number of members told me to leave it be, however, if your phal is in such bad condition that it really starting to look like its 'going to go', than your best bet might just be to cut it and wait for it to bloom beautiful next year.

Goodluck! everything is going to be ok. Im in the same boat as you.

[psyc1210]

All of my Phals are in clay balls (aliflor) and they are all doing well. A few of them started out real bad because they were in sphag from home depot...so after repotting into aliflor, they have all perked up quite a bit. I do think that potting into the LECA takes a little bit for the Phal to adjust, because the media is so different than the moss or bark. When I repot mine, I tend to unpot a couple months later to check for any roots that decided they didn't like the new media. Clip them off, and repot again. All of my Phals have many new roots that have no issues with the LECA, it just seems like the existing roots some of them adapt, and others do not.

[psyc1210]

Here is a link to a thread that I started, with pictures and info on one of my Phals in aliflor

My first orchid AFTER aliflor

[lissie0113]

So i was just given my first phal, and it is potted in sphag moss. it definitely holds alot of water, but so far the roots look healthy and it is beautiful in full bloom. should i repot it now to prevent root rot? or wait until after the flowers fade and then repot? i have no idea since i have never had a phal before..... please help so i dont kill it!

[crazyblue]

ok
reading this im now a little worried about one of my phals thats in moss. i brought it half price beacuse it was over watered and looked terrible. Ive had it about 4 months now and its already grown two new leaves and looks great. Trouble is if moss is not a good medium in colder temps, should i repot it into bark? Im always very careful with its watering over my others that are in bark/compost.

[PhalPal]

What medium is best??? and When should I repot???? are topics covered often on this forum. The answers are as varied as the number of growers we have. Nobody is right and nobody is wrong. We live all over the world and our conditions are vastly different, as well as our personal preferences and habits. As a beginner, it is your job to find out what works best for YOU.

The trick is to find a mix that works best for you in your conditions with your watering habits. Spraghum moss works great for some of us; I'm with Brook here - I only use it on species Phals. I have killed more orchids with bark than any other mix, but many like it and think it is best for beginners. I don't, because bark doesn't absorb water well when it's new, and then it decomposes and a newbie may not be able to recognise the signs of soggy bark and root rot will happen eventually. Just a personal opinion!

In general, orchids can grow in almost anything. What needs to adjust is how much and how often you water your orchid. The skewer method is excellent for learning and I still use it. If you live in a hot, muggy area, moss may not be for you unless your orchid likes to stay wet. (most don't)

ALL orchids like good drainage. Pick a pot with lots of holes and water your plant until water pours out of the bottom. Put your skewer into the mix all the way to the bottom of the pot and leave it there. Twisting it as you push to the bottom helps the skewer to 'bounce' off of roots it may encounter, rather than putting a hole through it. Go slow! As a learning experience, check the skewer every day and water when it is dry or slightly damp, depending on your orchid and what it's needs are.

This is very important: You won't know if a mix is working for your and your plant unless you leave it there for at least one growing season. Pick a mix, any mix, plant your orchid, set your skewer and water as indicated. You will be the determining factor more so than what media you use.

Many of us repot immediately when we buy a new orchid, blooming or not. I am one of these because I have lost a few orchids to rotten moss below the surface where I could not see it. Phals don't seem to mind; I have rarely lost a bloom because I repotted. In any case, I would rather lose a few flowers than lose the entire plant.

I hope I have helped more than confused! Take in all the advice you will hear from 'geeks, nursery people and friends and pick one that you feel will best suit your needs and your orchids. Beware of anyone who says "this is the only way to grow orchids." If they are successful with a certain method, that's great. It may not work for you and don't feel like a failure if you follow their exact instructions and your orchid dies. Try something else until it fits YOU. And remember ----This is a hobby and should be FUN!!!

[articuno75]

Moss can be your friend or your worst enemy. Depends on how you look at it and how you work with it. I find moss to be an excellent medium for Phals. I also like the Coir mix. To me they're both the same in the moisture consistency and retention. What makes moss an enemy is that most retail chains pack the stuff too much and cause a plant's demise. Also when using moss as a medium, every month or two I "fluff" the pots, so that the medium doesn't pack in on itself and smother the roots. Use too little of the stuff and you're watering more frequently, that's all.