Browning but firm leaves

[swcheng15]

Hi! I'm new to this board.

I've had these orchids for years. Only this year have I noticed that they're not happy. They are in a south facing garden window but is slightly shaded with paper on the top shelf. I live in northern california where we've had some cold weather. Also, as an aside, our house heater hasn't worked all winter long, so the house is colder (maybe low to mid 60s). Any way, I water about once a week. One is in a clay pot, the other is in the glass pot it came in (I don't water that one as often). Because I thought maybe the one in the clay pot had root rot, I repotted into the same pot but added some bark into the mix (it was mostly sphagnum moss previously). From reading online, I thought maybe that there was too much sun as well, so I've since moved the pot away from the window. The leaves, although getting reddish brown, are still firm and don't look like they are dying off. Both the plants have flower stalks. The one with the glass pot is on its way out. The one in the clay pot is a new shoot with buds on the end.

Any thoughts as to the culprit for the darker leaves? My other orchids (all phals) have green leaves, though I notice some are turning colors as well (and not the typical bottom leaf turning color). I've also since put a heavier shade cloth on the top shelf to further reduce the light. Thanks for any help!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

It's not "browning". It is hyper-pigmented. It is developing more anthocyanin pigments. The anthocyanin acts kind of like sunscreen. (Obviously, anthocyanin is not "sunscreen" and it is more complicated than what I described, but this concept is easier for people to understand.)

[Ray]

Assuming Philip's assessment of the photos is correct, they're simply getting WAY too much light.

Looks like repotting is way overdue, as well.

[swcheng15]

Originally Posted by King_of_orchid_growing:)

It's not "browning". It is hyper-pigmented. It is developing more anthocyanin pigments. The anthocyanin acts kind of like sunscreen. (Obviously, anthocyanin is not "sunscreen" and it is more complicated than what I described, but this concept is easier for people to understand.)

Thanks! I appreciate it. I was looking all over online using words like "brown leaves" or whatever, and could not find anything. But once I looked up anthocyanin, images that were similar to my babies came up.

Another newbie question, I know that I need to repot. I will probably wait until after the flower stalk dies. Do I look for a slightly bigger pot?

---------- Post added at 08:41 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:35 AM ----------

Originally Posted by Ray

Assuming Philip's assessment of the photos is correct, they're simply getting WAY too much light.

Looks like repotting is way overdue, as well.

Thanks! I'm going to go with Philip's assessment, and have moved it away from the window, as well as added a shade to help with the other ones still there.

Yes, I need to repot, but will wait until the flower stalk dies. Dumb question...I assume a bigger pot?

[Dollythehun]

It depends on what the roots look like. I often use the same pot. Whatever, the rule of thumb is to allow for a year (it so) growth.

[swcheng15]

Originally Posted by Dollythehun

It depends on what the roots look like. I often use the same pot. Whatever, the rule of thumb is to allow for a year (it so) growth.

Dolly, if you use the same pot, do you then trim the roots? Or would you just put the roots into the pot? Thanks!

[Ray]

Whenever you unpot the plant, the existing root system will likely show signs of some damage. If it's is extensive, you're best to remove the damaged parts. Once unpotted, old medium extracted, and system trimmed if needed (don't do it just to reduce the size of the root mass), THEN judge whether it needs a new pot or not.

Going a couple of inches more in diameter than the root ball is good.

[swcheng15]

Originally Posted by Ray

Whenever you unpot the plant, the existing root system will likely show signs of some damage. If it's is extensive, you're best to remove the damaged parts. Once unpotted, old medium extracted, and system trimmed if needed (don't do it just to reduce the size of the root mass), THEN judge whether it needs a new pot or not.

Going a couple of inches more in diameter than the root ball is good.

Thanks, Ray. I did trim off a bunch of dead roots for the one in the clay pot and changed out some of the media, but didn't do a total repot because it had a flower stem and I didn't want to shock it. I'll have to look for some larger pots, just in case. Thanks!

[Ray]

Originally Posted by swcheng15

Thanks, Ray. I did trim off a bunch of dead roots for the one in the clay pot and changed out some of the media, but didn't do a total repot because it had a flower stem and I didn't want to shock it. I'll have to look for some larger pots, just in case. Thanks!

With what you've already done, the plant has experienced as much shocking as you're going to do. Putting it into fresh medium will be a "plus", not a "minus".

[swcheng15]

Originally Posted by Ray

With what you've already done, the plant has experienced as much shocking as you're going to do. Putting it into fresh medium will be a "plus", not a "minus".

Ok! Then time to look for bigger pots! Thanks!