Issues with coconut husk

[PointyMax]

Hi everyone!

I am new to the forum, and to taking care of orchids as well, and I hope I'll find a good advice here!
So I have two phal orchids. One is mini and one regular-sized. Got both from the grocery store couple months ago (one as a present). They finally stopped blooming and dropped their flowers, so I cut off the spikes and figured it was a time to repot. My big phal was planted in bark, and my mini one was jammed in a tiny pot full of moss. I researched different potting media and settled on coconut husk plus sponge rock. I added some moss to the mini phal, since it was already used to it.
In couple of days after repotting and first watering I noticed white fuzzy mold around the coconut husk chips on my big orchid. My small one was doing fine. By the way, they were both potted in net pots, so plenty of air here! I took my big phal out of the pot and noticed that some of the new roots started to turn black on the ends and got a yellowish tint. I washed the coco husk, soaked it in water for 24 hours and potted the orchid again. Same story. I'm really not sure what to do at this point. I was thinking about potting the orchid in sponge rock or moss alone. It still puzzles me why my mini orchid didn't get the mold, since I used the same coconut husk!
I will appreciate any piece of advice! Really don't want to torture my orchid anymore by taking it in and out of the pot!

[Dendian]

Hello and to geeks.

When you repotted did you soak the plant in anything to remove any bacteria/molds that may have been present in the old media and are on the plant? The white stuff almost looks like spider webs.

The ends might have been damaged during repotting - so that's why they turned brown. The yellowing is usually a response to no light.. but otherwise the roots look very healthy.

I really don't have an explanation that fits all your facts..and I have not run into the webby looking coco husk chips before either. Maybe if you soak the chips in something to kill the mold/webs? :dontkknow:

P.S. I don't think Phals care if you take them out of the pot - just be careful not to damage anything. Remember - in nature they don't live in a pot - they just hang out on trees

[dounoharm]

i suggest a good soaking in physan 20 and then potting.....did you wash your coco husk 3 times before using it? they need to be cleared of salts before using....

[PointyMax]

Thank you for the fast reply, Dian!

I did wash the roots off in tap water before repoting, but I didn't soak them in anything. What do you think would be a good disinfectant that is not toxic to the plant, and which one should I soak the coco husk in? I didn't notice any mold/webs on the old medium, so it is still unclear whether they came from the husk or from the orchid. But again, my mini phal doesn't seem to have any problems. Also, what should I keep my orchid in while it's out of the pot? I know I've got many questions, so thank you in advance!

[PointyMax]

Thank you! So I'll get the disinfectant, will soak both medium and orchid and see what happens. For how long do you think?
It was my first repoting experience, so I didn't soak the husk beforehand, but as I noted in the post, after I saw the mold/webs, I washed the husk several times and soaked it for 24 hours. That didn't help.

[dounoharm]

i use the physan 20 once a week for about 3 weeks to get rid of fungal/bacterial infections....if that doesnt work i get out the copper fungicide/bacteriacide phyton 27....and soak roots and all.....gl

[Dendian]

Phals can be out of the pot for a day or so without harm - just put them in a damp paper towel or something to prevent the roots from drying out all the way if you have really low humidity. I have put an unplanned rescue Phal back in its empty washed pot while soaking the media overnight to plant in the next day. Phal was/is fine.

I think if you dunk the plant (roots and top) in the Physan 20 diluted according to the bottle instructions for replanting of orchids - and then put the coco husk in the Physan 20 overnight for a good long soak that will hopefully do the trick. I don't think you will want to soak the whole plant in Physan 20 for that long...

Oh, I have only found Physan 20 at a hyrdoponics store or online - I have never seen it at my local nurserys or hardware stores.

Good Luck

[PointyMax]

Thank you guys for valuable advice!
Yeah, I already looked up Physan 20 in Lowe's and Home Depot, but didn't find any, so eBay it is!
I will let you know how it all worked out!

[digitalgate]

root turning black or brown can be due to various reason. Washing is one of them, when you apply too much pressure or too much movement to root . They are damaged in the process. Looking moldy-like may not be bad for plant as it might not implies mold. There are so many type of fungus, some are very beneficial . Mycorrhizal fungi is one of them, that hairy looking thing is often present in coconut husk. So don't be too quick to use physan. They are very rare and difficult to come by, beneficial fungus crowd out bad ones (not all the time).
So i would advise against doing anything unless the plant show other sign of fungus problem. By the way , the plant look very healthy.

[cable]

I've seen that white mold before on coco husks. Or at least something that looks a lot like it. My orchids didn't seem to care about it, it's just kinda ugly. So I wouldn't be overly worried. I agree with the Physan suggestion as a way to get rid of it, if you choose to.

[PointyMax]

Thank you everyone for good suggestions! I ordered Physan just in case, and for now will put my orchid back into the pot with the coconut husk and see if it continues to grow leaves and roots. If it doesn't, I'll use the disinfectant, but hope this fungus/mold is a beneficial one!

[digitalgate]

Originally Posted by PointyMax

Thank you everyone for good suggestions! I ordered Physan just in case, and for now will put my orchid back into the pot with the coconut husk and see if it continues to grow leaves and roots. If it doesn't, I'll use the disinfectant, but hope this fungus/mold is a beneficial one!

Mycorrhizal only grow on root area , visible around there too.

[orchids4me]

Hello and welcome to geeks
Its always good to have physan 20 in your arsonal of that one day you need it now lol. Here's where you can get some. I've never found it at any nursrys or stores. But here is where you can find it
rePotme Orchid Supplies - Orchid Mix - Orchid Pots - Orchid Care - Orchid Fertilizer