Species loss

[Hummer344]

My Phal amboinensis has bit the dust. I received it 4/8 & repotted it 4/10. It initially did well but then began loosing leaves. No sign of rot but it actied like it. The last leaf fall off today. The roots were not bad and I have no idea what happened.

Meanwhile the Paph. spicerianum was received the same day, has received the same treatment and has done well. No sign of sickness and has put out new leaves.

David

[articuno75]

David, were there any signs on the leaves? Like wrinkling, wilting, or otherwise? What about the grow conditions? There were several of us that had issues with dropping and yellowing leaves. I wonder if your plant went into a catatonic shock that just couldn't recover. I'm sooo sorry to hear about this.

[mayres]

David - did it loose the leaves from the bottom up? What other symptoms did you note? What did you have it planted in? What were your temps? Curious curious here for any details you can provide. Sorry to hear it happened - do you have other phals/any species phals? Same treatment?

[Rocinante]

Sorry for your loss, but for $6.00 is it too late to try again

[Vivienne]

sniff sniff - sorry to hear about from Amboi.

[solay]

I hate when that happens. Poop!!! You'll just have to try again. Maybe you just got a bad one. That's what I always say. Not your fault at all.

[Hummer344]

Lets see, details details:
The leaves didn't wrinkle but showed yellowing at the base first then fell off. Its sorta strange. I have seen this in root rot but usually they turn black first. It lost its leaves from the top down. The biggest leaf fall off last.

I re-potted it in a mix of coconut husk, regular bark, small and medium dyna-roc, just a little spag moss, perlite and charcole. Its the same mix I put all my orchids in. I just adjust the mix to the plant. A little more big pieces, or a tad more little stuff. All very scientific. I only use spag when plants are very young and need just a tad more moisture and usually with my phals. I really have to be careful because I have rotted more plants than I care to admit to.

The plant was kept in my upstairs office until May one. Cool at night, warm during the day but not hot. Since may one, they have been outside and our weather has been delitefull. 70-75 during the day high 40's low 50's during the night. Nice a breezy during the afternoon. What more could an orchid want during the spring?

Ah well, this is a trial so you have to expect a little death and dying along the way.

[patticake]

Oh, No! I'm so sorry! Maybe you got a weak one to start.
My Phal. amboinensis is doing o.k.- I lost a leaf from yellowing at first too. I've had mine under T-12's. It's doing better. Try with another one.- Maybe you got a dud!

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

Yep, problem is obvious enough. You froze the poor thing. Baker's sheet gives a record low for the locality in which it grows of 65F. I have been avoiding many of these species Phals until recently because of the high temps they require. I have a violacea that was 3' away from small opening in a window in the middle of summer that gave the plant a wind chill that killed off 90% of the leaf area. By now it has grown half a leaf which more than doubles the poor babies leaf area.

Keep the stump warm, and who knows.

[Brassavola]

Originally Posted by Hummer344

Lets see, details details:
The leaves didn't wrinkle but showed yellowing at the base first then fell off. Its sorta strange. I have seen this in root rot but usually they turn black first. It lost its leaves from the top down. The biggest leaf fall off last.

OMG, the same thing happened to me, only mine was a phalaenopsis hybrid. I realized that it had begun to rot in the inside of the crown, but I don't know why. Sorry

[arleneg]

Hummer,

If your Phal still have good roots, don't bury it, yet. I have a Phal whose leaves all fell off. When that happened, I was confused because the roots are healthy. So I put it aside and kept watering it twice a week. Several days later, I noticed a green tip growing from the center where the top leaf was. Now, I have a new leaf measuring about 1/2".

[solay]

I agree totally, give it a chance until it is definitely dead dead dead!

[Hummer344]

To late, it is gone, gone, gone, on to a new life as compost.

[articuno75]

I'm sorry, I had to laugh on that one.

Hummer were you going to try again?

[solay]

That's so funny. Well I guess it's time to move on then. Good luck with the next one!

[arleneg]

Originally Posted by Hummer344

To late, it is gone, gone, gone, on to a new life as compost.

I thought you said the roots weren't bad. Oh well, I guess time to move on.

[kmarch]

I think your species are dying because you're capitalizing their specific epithets. They're very sensitive about such things and dont' like to have their species names capitalized.

[myorchid]

Kevin,

You are so funny!! That just cracks me up...

[solay]

If that's the case then I'm in BIG trouble. Don't know when to use lower case and when to use capital letters. I don't always know what's a species and what's a hybrid. Hee! Hee! Hee!

[kmarch]

Originally Posted by solay

Don't know when to use lower case and when to use capital letters.

It's super simple:
1) The genus is always capitalized, always.
2) The species name (specific ephitet) is always lower case, always.
3) The grex (hybrid name that replaces the species name in hybried) is always capitalized, always.

Originally Posted by solay

I don't always know what's a species and what's a hybrid. Hee! Hee! Hee!

This is super simple too:
1) The grex names (hybrid names) are (almost) always in modern English (only a few exceptions apply to this rule as a handful of very old hybrids have latinized names - one example of an old hybrid that has a latinized name is Phrag Sedenii - there aren't bery many of these though).
2) Species names (specific epithet) are always Latinized, always.

EXAMPLES:
PAPHHIOPEDILUM ROTHSCHILDIANUM - Looking at the first name first we know this is a genus (generic ephitet) and we know that all genus are capotalized. The second mane, rothschildianum, is Latinized so this is a species name which is not capitalized. The correct capitalization of this name then is: Paphiopedilum rothschildianum.

GUARITONIA WHY NOT - to begin with the genus name is a combination of Guarianthe and Broughtonia so already we know it is a hybrid so we need look no further, the whole name will be capitalized like this: Guaritonia Why Not.

Questions?