New NOID Phal with purple leaves!

[BunnytheOrchid]

Hi all,

Ok, I have been concerned about purplish leaves on phals before because I couldn't tell if it was a part of the plant or a sign of poor lighting. So I tried something new and got one with some purple in the crown and newest leaf. So, my question is, is this the "ok" purple? Also, one of the leaves is terribly limp. I believe it is because it got smooshed in the pot, but how can I revive it? It needs a little more light? And.....less water? or more? I don't know. Thanks for the advice in advance.

Also, the last picture is a continuation of my re-spiking phal. It's the first time an orchid has rebloomed for me, so I'm cataloging its life!

The pics can be enlarged by clicking on them. Thanks again!

[kmarch]

Purple is ok. Some phal species (namely schilleriana and stuartiana) have purple on the undersides of their leaves. So this is not necessarily a sign of too much or too little light.

The limp leaf is a different story. Phal leaves should be crisp and stiff. The roots look a little rough and itlooks like the phal is about ready to fall out of the pot. After it finishes blooming, I'd recommend a repot. Remove the dead roots and getting the plant down in the pot better.

[clarita]

Yes it is a sign of being underlight. In winter some of my new leaves start out violet. However they turn green as they grow. as Kmarch mentions, leaves should be stiff. Another indicator that the plant has been underlight. Underlighting can lead to over watering and root rot. Go easy with the water until the light is corrected

[PhalPal]

Purple leaves are usually a sign of OVER lighting. If underlit the entire leaf will be purple, not just the edges as yours are. On some Phals purple edges (or undersides) are a natural coloring and nothing to worry about. New leaves emerging from the crown are often purple and turn green as they mature to full size. I agree that it is ready for a re-pot, but if only the bottom leaf is wilting it just may be dying and lived out it's natural life. If it turns yellow and eventually pulls off easily and no other leaves follow suit, this is the case.

[kmarch]

Originally Posted by clarita

...[purple leaves]...Yes it is a sign of being underlight.

Originally Posted by PhalPal

Purple leaves are usually a sign of OVER lighting. If underlit the entire leaf will be purple, not just the edges as yours are.

Well maybe, not necessarily. Please read my previous post. Breeding also affects leaf colour.

Originally Posted by clarita

leaves should be stiff. Another indicator that the plant has been underlight. Underlighting can lead to over watering and root rot.

The limp leaf isnt a result of underlight. Leaves don't respond to light in that manner. Loss of leaf turgor pressure in leaves is caused by dehydration in the leaf. Leaf dehydration can be caused by very low huidity, underwatering, overwatering (and therefore root loss) or age.

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It is useful to keep in mind that a symptom (like a reddish tint to a leaf or a limp leaf) can have multiple causes. I can't stress enough how important it is to recognize this and advise accordingly. For example, if a member has a limp leaf that is the result of normal ageing and leaf drop, yet someone recommends to increase watering, the plant is now at risk for root rot. If someone has a Phal that is heavy with red pigments because of its breeding and someone recommends increasing the light, the plant is now at risk for sumburn or other problems.

I understand the desire to be helpful and say, "The cause of your problem is this and here's how you fix it," and certainly it's good to want to ive a member some advice that they can actually do something with immediately, but I believe it is more helpful to present the full picture and thereby educate a member on the various aspects of orchid culture, how they affect the plant which ultimately results in learning how to read a plant (diagnose its problems) and act accordingly.

[BunnytheOrchid]

Thank kmarch, phalpal, and clarita for the advice. I was hoping as well that it may just be losing its leaves as usual, but every other phal I have that has lost leaves yellowed them first rather than made them limp. I put it on a humidity tray and misted under the leaves this morning, and it has diffused southern light. It may just be my imagination, but this afternoon after my classes the leaf looked slightly more perky. Not super stiff and perky like a healthy plant, but it's not touching the pot anyone. The media has some condensation on the inside of the pot, so I will water it in a few days. Thank you again for the advice. And I'm happy the purple isn't a bad sign. It actually looks pretty neat. It gives this phal a distinction from my other ones

[kmarch]

Couple of questions Bunny....

How are the roots?
Do you use the skewer method?

[BunnytheOrchid]

I am not an expert on phal species, but this particular one (no name tag) has smaller sized roots. The other 3 phals I have seem to have slightly larger roots. Not necessarily plumper, just physically larger. Its in a plastic container, so the visible roots look green and normal. As for the skewer method, I believe it was phalpal who sent me the link to the thread that described it, so I found read it and am familiar with it. I am not using it currently. The two oldest orchids I have seem to thrive on a week schedule (water once a week). The newer ones I have been inspecting by sticking my finger in the mix to see if it is moist and seeing how much moisture is in the pot via condensation.

Does that help? Let me know if I'm neglecting any info

[PhalPal]

Originally Posted by PhalPal

Purple leaves are usually a sign of OVER lighting. If underlit the entire leaf will be purple, not just the edges as yours are.

This should have read 'OVERLIT the entire leaf will be purple', but once I caught it my edit button was gone. I am getting used to my T5 lights and have plenty of examples if anyone is interested.

Kevin when giving any type of advice I try to give the general overview of orchid care, especially when speaking of Phals. This one group alone contains thousand upon thousands of different orchids, and to ALWAYS be saying 'sometimes' 'usually' 'most' 'not always' and similiar terms will be exhausting at the least.
Most of us rarely say 'never' or 'always,' two words I personally try to avoid, but unfortunately my current and apparently inadequate attempts to offer help to others is the best I can do at this point.

[kmarch]

Originally Posted by BunnytheOrchid

I am not an expert on phal species,

That's fine because you don't have a species any way, you have a hybrid.

Originally Posted by BunnytheOrchid

... the visible roots look green and normal. As for the skewer method, I believe it was phalpal who sent me the link to the thread that described it, so I found read it and am familiar with it. I am not using it currently. The two oldest orchids I have seem to thrive on a week schedule (water once a week). The newer ones I have been inspecting by sticking my finger in the mix to see if it is moist and seeing how much moisture is in the pot via condensation.

I think you're probably doing ok. If you roots are healthy then your limp leaf is probably the result of natural die-off or low water/humidity. Since the leaf seems to have responded to the misting, maybe try that again some morning (not at night). I hesitate recommending increasing watering because 1) your other orchids are doing well on your watering schedule, and 2) overwatering is always a bas thing.

Keep us posted.