Week rescue phal

[thatoneguywhoissupercool]

I have somewhat of a rescue phal, when i got it it was just begining to open its flower buds, well the buds are very week looking. As well with this the plant is not recovering as fast as i would like it too. Any advice on this would be good, im not sure if removing the flower spike would help the plant regain its vigor?

[kmarch]

Dear ...cool (sorry for abbreviating your name but that's a lot of typing and I'm not that ambitious),

Phal buds can be a little temperamental. They can slow down or even blast and drop when you bring a plant home and its conditions get changed. I think your bud/bloom problem is nothing to worry about. You do want to keep your plant healthy though. Lets start with the roots: When did you last repot and what was the condition of the roots at that time? If the roots are healthy and if your conditions/care are good, your plant will probably recover. Blooming does consume a lot of energy and ending the bloom cycle by cutting a spike off will mean more energy for the recovery of the plant. For some it is painful to cut off a flower spike, but it it will benefit the plant it may be desirable.

Hope that's helpful. Let us know how it goes.

[thatoneguywhoissupercool]

Kmarch,
Indeed it is the root system, Ill have to be more careful about this, I havent had the plant but a month maybe. The roots themselves arent looking good at all, there is a very small percentage still alive. What would you recomend?

[mayres]

Rotted root systems are the most common issue with rescue plants in the most common areas you will find them - such as home depot, lowes, grocery outlets, etc. Typically they have been watered to death by well meaning but totally incompetent employees where they may be found. The first thing to do is remove ALL of the rotted and otherwise wasted roots. In some cases no roots or nearly no roots will require drastic measures - such as the procedure commonly called sphag and bag. If there are at least a few good roots left - even short ones - you can probably get away with putting it into a small pot with a very retentive media - such as sphag (or I like to use one with coir as the main ingredient). This process can literally take a couple of years to revive back to a descent flowering specimen. It is not for the faint of heart. Unless you enjoy the challenge - for many it might be more satisfying to start over with a plant that is healthy. Good luck - mike