Taking a keiki off the mother plant

[Armin_Grobbelaar]

Good day

I want to remove my keiki from it's mother plant and I just have a few questions(pictures of the keiki is attached)

1: If I pot the keiki, is it better to plant it upright or must I rather repot it how it naturally grows?

2: I plan on just planting the keiki in coarse bark because the keiki's roots have been in the air all their life. Am I correct in my thinking or is their something better to pot the keiki in?

3: I misted the roots of the keiki every time I gave the mother plant water, the mother plant is planted in sphagnum mos. My question is how often should I water the potted keiki and how should I water?

[Shadeflower]

hi armin,
congrats on the keiki.

1. It's growing upside down so youhave to turn it 180 degrees before you pot it. The orientation really doesn't matter. They grow towards the light.

2. coarse bark is a good choice for phals

3. Pretty much carry on the misting routine you had going. With some bark surrounding the roots in future they will be in a more humid environment which should trigger root growth again. Aim to keep the bark damp, not wet, I look at the condensation on the sides of the pots of weigh them to give me an idea. Every week you replace the bit of water that has been used up. Everyone has different preferences, either spraying a little on the surface every few days or dunking the whole pot in water or just watering the pot a bit. Dunking should only be used for fast draining chunky bark. It's not a method I use much myself as it means you have to keep up with watering all year long since it will reliably dry out fast every time. I prefer a mix that is a bit more water retentive - that way I can add a bit more water and not water as much. Just don't use something that is too water retentive. The substrate is important, it needs to stay airy and humid. Watering should be to top up any lost water during the week. At least for me it is, there are different approaches to watering by different growers. Like in a really chunky bark mix it is impossible to overwater but you have to keep up with watering before the orchid dries too much.
In more water retentive media if you water too much your roots will rot so it is possible to overwater but it will hold more water over time so used correctly with the right amount of water for up to a week (instead of completely saturating it) the more water retentive media will work well too. As long as you know what can and can't be done.

Again some growers like to flush their pots regularly, they need chunky fast draining substrate but the downside is it needs lots of watering in summer and can be a chore to keep up.
A more water retentive media like moss should never be dunked or flushed too much as it will retain too much water but it will hold water for longer between waterings and as long as it's not too saturated will still allow good air flow in the rootzone.

Lots like to use a mix of moss and bark or my favorite is perlite and bark. It gives a bit of both, great airflow through the pot and also a bit more water retentiveness, as long as not too much moss is used it can be drenched and supply the orchid with lots of water.

It takes growing these keiki's as expereiments and trying out what we have on hand and might work well. I would start in bark, always start airy, then add moss or perlite as needed if you feel it dries too much.

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[Dimples]

The photos are a bit blurry/backlit but from what I can see, given the size of the keiki compared to the one root it has, I'd wait for more root growth before detaching it from the main plant.

The one root visible in the pictures may not be large/long enough to keep that volume of leaves adequately hydrated without a very high humidity environment. Unless I'm mistaken, the largest leaf on the keiki looks to be quite large compared to the root, and the keiki looks to have a good number of leaves in total. Yes?

Any chance you can take a few more photos in a better light?

[Fairorchids]

I consider coarse bark one of the worst choices for Phalaenopsis, as Phals do not need to dry out between waterings. It would work only if you like to water a lot.

The aerial roots of the keiki will adapt to whatever you do. My own choice would be either spaghnum, or a spaghnum/bark mix (3 or 4 to 1 ratio), but packed only fingertip tight in the pot (or basket).

[estación seca]

So long as the supporting stem remains alive there is no rush to separate them. I leave them as long as possible so they get as big as possible with as many roots as possible before separating. That way they reach flowering size faster than one separated when smaller. Once the supporting stem begins dying your hand is forced.

[Armin_Grobbelaar]

Thank you everyone for your replies, I have attached extra photos. The one leave on the keiki does not look good. It's drooping a lot and is not firm, there are also streaks on the leave. I spray the roots when they become white, must I try to add orchid fertilizer to the water? There is a second keiki coming out, so maybe all the energy is going to the second keiki(which is under the current keiki)?

[camille1585]

How is the mother plant? in your original photos the sphagnum its in looks rather old and stale (based on the color) so i'd be concerned about the state of the mother's roots. The stem looks fine, and the presence of a new keiki shouldn't be causing problems for the older keiki.

If that were my plant I'd probably remove the keiki, pot it up and stick it in a high humidity environment (terrarium, or in a large plastic bag) to help those leaves recover some moisture while it grows additional roots.

[estación seca]

The stem below the keiki may be dead. It looks like the keiki hasn't received enough water for some time.

I would remove it now. Soak it in a bowl of water with a tiny bit of fertilizer for 12-24 hours and then pot it. Sphagnum or bark would work but watering is different between them. Search here and read about using sphagnum.

Attend to the mother plant as Camille mentioned.