Newbie, new phal

[belacat]

Hello,

I've always loved orchids, but being a student found that $50 was just too much to pay for the orchids at the boutique garden stores. I was at Ikea today and bought a white phalaenopsis for $17. But in reading up on orchids on the internet, it seems that the consensus is you get what you pay for.

Nonetheless, I'd like to see what I can do with this little phal and would appreciate some advice. I have read the tips on watering, temperature, humidity, lighting, etc. but have a few more questions, wondering if there are specific things I should do with a new plant of "unknown" origins\care.

My orchid has 1 stem, 3 flowers, 6 buds. It is potted in a clear plastic tub in what appears to be a bark mixture. I have placed this in a white ceramic pot that has a little "shelf" in the middle, so the plastic pot doesn't quite hit the bottom, I guess to allow for drainage. I stuck my finger down the side of the pot an inch or so, the potting mixture is neither dry nor damp. The leaves are big, a med-dark green, one appears to have a blackish cast or shadow to it on one half. I am concerned about the roots, they seem to run up and down through the pot with most poking up at the top, and they are a light green with a whitish cast, like they have frost on them (except they don't, of course). A couple roots have completely withered tips, while one seems to be damaged - broken but not all the way through.

My questions are:
1) should I water it right away? the mixture is neither noticeably dry nor noticeably damp.
2) I've read about plants being packed too tightly or being infested with bugs. Should I take the plant out of the pot and check that the roots aren't rotted or crawling with bugs?
3) The flowers are lovely, though the edges seem a little fragile, as thin as tissue. Is this ok?
4) From what I wrote above, does it sound like the roots are in trouble, and if so what would you suggest?

Many thanks!! Hopefully this is the start of many happy years of orchid growing.

[Tarad]

Congrats on your purchase! Do you have any pics of what your phal looks like? IT is easier to give advice sometimes when we can see it. Tara

[brookn]

Light green with a whitish cast is normal, the whitish silvery stuff is the velum of the roots. This helps to absorb water and nutrients. You will find that when they are wet the velum becomes translucent and you can see the green of the root. Not all Phals roots look this way though, sometimes they can have a tan color to them, or white especially when they are down in potting medium. The roots don't sound like they are in trouble, though it sounds like it might be potbound. A picture would help a lot. Also I generally repot plants I get at stores like this, if you are careful the blooms will be just fine. You could give it a couple of days to acclimate to your conditions before repot. Like I said though, a picture would help a lot.

[CulpableCaptive]

I will answer your questions in the order you asked them and say what ‘I’ would do:
1. As has been suggested, give the Phalaenopsis a few days to become acclimated to its new surroundings. Then I would begin a watering schedule of every 7 to 9 days.
2. You say it is planted in bark so I wouldn’t worry about it being packed to tightly. When Sphagnum moss is used and tightly packed it usually creates a potting medium which stays wet in the center at all times, this is usually what ends up killing the plant. Since you say it looks like it is planted in bark I wouldn’t worry about too much moisture at this time. After it has finished blooming, you can take it out of the pot and check for broken down medium that needs to be replaced and you can remove any dead roots (if either of those things are needed).
3. The flowers sound fine and no worse for the wear. They have been jostled around a lot in shipping. Now they have a nice stable place to continue growing and new blooms will most likely look better than the ones that were open when you made your purchase.
4. From what you wrote it does not sound like the roots are in trouble and I wouldn’t worry about any bugs.

After a few days, begin to water well once a week to every 9 days. Bring the pot that has the orchid in it to the sink and water it very well with tepid water until water runs out the drainage holes – wait ten minutes and water it again to make sure the medium has been saturated. Make sure it drains at the sink. When it has stopped dripping water you can replace it in its decorative container. You don’t want it sitting in water.
Enjoy the flowers since you bought it for enjoyment. It’s your first orchid. Relax.
When it has finished flowering you can worry about the possibility of it needing to be transplanted or not – for now just relax and enjoy.
Everything else you are concerned about you can worry about later when you decide to keep the orchid and have it re-bloom for you.

[fred]

welcome to the forum
you will find the following links helpful
Culture sheet from the AOS
AOS | Phalaenopsis
Skewer use for watering of orchids
http://www.orchidgeeks.com/forum/orc...f-orchids.html

[Blueszz]

Hello Belacat,
welcome to the forum!

To know if I should water or not, I like to use the skewer method. I use an untreated wooden stick which I stick in the center of the pot. When I think my chids need water, I pull it out of the medium and feel with my upper lip (flesh between nose and lip in fact) how damp/cold the stick is.
For a Phalaenopsis I water when it feels almost dry and not cool anymore.
An other good indication is the color of the roots. When they are silvery it's about time to water, but the center of the pot could be still very damp despite the roots close to the wall of the pot seam dry. Never water when you still see tiny droplets of water on the inside of the transluctant pot.
After a while you feel by the weight of the pot if it needs to be watered of not.

I like the skewer method for new plants as different media holds moister in a different way. For instance moss stays wet/damp for a long time compared to bark. But older bark tends to keep moister for a longer time than new fresh bark.

Succes with your new Phalaenopsis! I have some beautiful and healthy plants from big stores too. To enjoy your hobby you don't have to spend a lot of money!

[Brooke]

Since your plant is in a clear pot, it is easy to judge when to water again. If there is condensation on the inside of the container, it means the center of the mix still has moisture. When there is no condensation, it is safe to water.

Your plant will appreciate fertilizer, weakly weekly (or when you water). Temps above 60 degrees and bright light. A couple hours of morning sun is ideal.

Your plant sounds healthy so enjoy your new addiction.

Brooke

[CharliesAngel51]

WELCOME!!!

I too just bought a Phal. It is also planted in a small clear plastic pot. Unfortunately mine is planted in Sphag. which I don't have any luck with. Except for color you could have been describing mine. I am going to wait until mine finishes blooming and then repot into more friendly potting mix for me.

I think you have to have 5 posts before you can post a picture. Everyone on here loves to see pictures so after you have made the required posts maybe you can show us some pics.of your new baby.

Sounds like you have bought yourself a pretty orchid. Don't worry about it's pedigree just enjoy it. LOL

Margaret

[belacat]

Thanks everyone for the very helpful comments. I will post a picture once I have the 5 posts. It's a lovely orchid.

[patticake]

belacat! Here's a link to skewer watering...
http://www.orchidgeeks.com/forum/new...f-orchids.html
I just re-potted a "rescue" Phal that was in soggy sphagnum moss. Here's a link to that also:
Potting up a new "rescue"!
Good luck, and let us know how its going!

[PhalPal]

I totally agree with the skewer method (above). It is difficult to set a firm schedule on when to water your orchid. It largely depends on what your have your orchid planted in and where you grow it. Even temps inside a house will vary throughtout the year and this will influence how often you will water your orchid. In addition, with whatever media you choose, almost all will breakdown and change, affecting it's ability to retain water. The skewer method takes the guess work out of it.

I repot everything when I get it home so I know exactly what I am dealing with. Other growers wait until the flowers fade, but I have never had a bud blast due to repotting. Bugs are usually not the problem, rotting roots are.

BTW - some of my favorite orchids have come from Trader Joes for $7.99, so cost is not always indicitive of plant quality!