how's my dwarf phal keiki planting?

[AprilsOrchids]

hi everyone,

as mentioned earlier,
i've gone ahead and potted up this dwarf phal keiki, pictures attached.

i had been hoping to leave this keiki attached to its mother plant for a while (so it would be fed umbilically - read this somewhere), but i couldn't seem to make the level of the pots work, especially with the new pot sitting on stones in a bowl of water.

Q: is the new orchid too low in the pot?

some of the roots are curved down and then up and sticking out of medium.
Q: is this okay?

fyi it's in a 4" plastic pot that sits in a metal pot, i put drainage holes in the bottom and half a dozom real cork corks in lieu of peanuts -

Q; does anyone have a thought on the use of real cork for orchids -- i heard they are excellent - when cut up into small pieces - about 6 pieces/cork on a local gardening show?

also, i situated this pot in a large bowl with stones and water - maybe you can see this?

AND

i bought a small cold air humidifier that puts out about 20 oz of water every 12 hours in 14' x 12' room, west facing bay windows, 3, and have located the humidifer near this newly planted keiki.

Q: good idea or bad idea. please advise.

thanks in advance for guidance ;-)







this is my first keiki so i'm a bit of a nervous nelly, my apologies if these questions are too junior.
thanks very much for your patience with newbies!
April

ps i know this keiki should have a tag listing the type and date planted; but i haven't bought any tags yet AND this was my first of two dwarf phals bought at Cda Blooms and they weren't even listed as phals - when they flower again, i'll post pics and maybe you orchid geeks can help me identify them. firstimer mistakes, eh? never buy an orchid that doesn't have an id ;-)

[kmarch]

I think it looks fine. The roots you have growing up and out of the pot are ok, nothing to worry about. Pieces of cork bark are frequently used to mount orchids and I have seen Vandas "planted" in baskets full of wine bottle corks. Cork does not soak up much water, in fact I don't think it soaks up any water so it is typically used n cases where you don't want the medium to rot (as in a mount) or where you need complete drainage and air circulation (as with the Vanda roots). I dont' know that it is used much in bark mixes.

[garyorchids]

hi aprilsorchids, i to am a junior orchid enthusiast. you have what looks like a lovely, healthy plant, my question is did this plant grow off of one of your excisting plants? as i understand it a keiki is a new plant that grows from an excisting plant, an off spring/ baby plant. did this grow from a flower or grow from the base of the plant ? it looks very well established. well done, very good growing :+ }

[mayres]

Looks good! The media looks pretty dry on top (which is not necesarily bad) - did you presoak your bark before using? If you didn't you may want to soak/water for awhile when you water to make certain the bark is absorbing enough moisture to make your phal's roots happy.

[AprilsOrchids]

Hi mayres,

Thanks for your reply and observations; I really appreciate them.

I did soak the medium overnight before I planted this phal keiki; but in spite of that the medium is really, really dry and so I am concerned to make sure this baby dwarf phal orchid keeps going.

So to be clear: you're suggesting I soak/submerge this planted keiki in water to water it?

Thanks,
April

[AprilsOrchids]

Originally Posted by garyorchids

hi aprilsorchids, i to am a junior orchid enthusiast. you have what looks like a lovely, healthy plant, my question is did this plant grow off of one of your excisting plants? as i understand it a keiki is a new plant that grows from an excisting plant, an off spring/ baby plant. did this grow from a flower or grow from the base of the plant ? it looks very well established. well done, very good growing :+ }

HI garyorchids,

This keiki grew off a spire (or is it spike) that had bloomed and been cut back to the node below the last flower (so the spire was about 3" long). I'm guessing that being up in the air well off the medium allowed this keiki to drop nice long roots (they were over 2" when I planted it).

Since developing this baby/keiki (which is an exact clone of the mother plant, I think?) I have read that plants develop keiki's when they are stressed; usually from underwatering; which was sadly true for my two dwarf phals. I have since improved my watering habits and hope that these two phals will flower again next year. If anyone knows anything else about why/how keikis develop, I would love to hear about it.

Thanks,
April

[mehitabel]

Originally Posted by AprilsOrchids

If anyone knows anything else about why/how keikis develop, I would love to hear about it..

Some species throw keikis quite readily. Equestris is one of those species for which throwing keikis is simply their nature and has nothing to do with stress of any kind. Equestris is a parent in many "dwarf" phals, and it's possible your phal has equestris ancestry. Equestris is such a keiki machine, that one orchid vendor, Al's Orchid Greenhouse, has named his equestris 'Keiki Monster'.