sick LC Cornelia?

[Fran20]

Got this in bloom mid Nov. (see pic) Tag said it was last repotted 9/18 in black lava rock. I noticed recently that leaves & pseudobulbs were shriveling and plant was dehydrated, although I water regularly under tap and allow to dry out . I wanted to repot into a slotted plastic 4" pot with red lava rock today. Upon unpotting, I saw many bottom roots were rotting and lava rock felt slimy. I removed all old media and some rotted velamen but didn't know if I should cut any more roots off. I soaked plant bare root for 1/2 hour. Right now, it's in a basket bare root and drying out in a shaded spot. What to do now? I was planning to repeat this soak and dry out bare rooted cycle a few more times. What do I do then? I am lost--Please advise.

[SouthPark]

Hi Fran. First of all - excellent move in checking the roots first.

You can still use the same black coloured plastic pot - but my recommendation is to use a soldering iron or something - to put more holes on the bottom of the pot. Not just on the bottom of the pot - but holes along the 'edge' perimeter where the bottom of the pot meets the side of the pot. The bigger the holes, and the more holes there are - the better the drainage. But of course - the holes shouldn't be so big for the lava rock pieces to fall out ----- unless biggest pieces of lava rock are placed in the bottom most layer of the pot to ensure no hole blockages.

The pot can sit on a drainage grate - or something else - which merely prevents some flat-bottom pots from getting their drainage holes blocked by whatever surface the pot sits upon.

Also - another recommendation is to not put the pot inside another pot (such as that clear glass that surrounds your pot). This prevents air flow through the pot, media and roots.

For your orchid - just allow the roots to dry out a little bit first - outside of the pot, give it a few hours or more. Then repot into lava rock. The only difference this time will be - good drainage pot and no 'outer' pot for blocking air flow.

Then put the orchid in a place with nice warm temperature, medium lighting level for now (no direct sunlight), and a place with either a good gentle breeze, or good gentle wind from a fan placed some suitable distance away.

Because the orchid is quite dehydrated at this time, it will be ok to use a spray water wand to spray the media each morning. Good sized drainage holes in the pot and good air-flow (from natural breeze or gentle fan air) through the pot is expected to avoid water logging.

What happened here was - not enough air-flow through the pot (maybe due to not enough holes) and media, and the roots couldn't get enough oxygen if there's not enough air (oxygen) and water movement through the pot and media. The oxygen is in the water, and if the water doesn't move enough - then the roots can get oxygen starvation, and begin to die. This then stops water from getting into the plant due to dead roots, leading to the shriveling.

[Fran20]

Thanks very much, South Park!
What about the roots that you can see? Shall I leave them as is?

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by Fran20

Thanks very much, South Park!
What about the roots that you can see? Shall I leave them as is?

Most welcome Fran. If there are any mushy or mushed roots, then just remove or strip away the mush with your fingers. Then repot. The plant doesn't appear to be getting attacked by anything like fungus. So it just needs as much nice care as possible - comfortable temperature, medium light level, and air-flow through the pot.

As the roots appear right now. It doesn't look like you need to do anything. Can leave as-is.

Don't be afraid of having the roots wet most of the time. The important thing is gentle air-flow through the pot. The oxygenated water movement will benefit the plant.

Also - don't become discouraged about what happened. If this orchid recovers - then it's going to be in good hands! The issue doesn't appear to be terminal - so not expecting any nasty outcome.

Fran - your new slotted plastic pot should be fine. Just make sure it has enough holes or slots to get the good drainage and air-flow through it.

One example of a good drainage pot can be seen at this link here: Click Here

If we can't get a hold of pots like the one in the link - then no problem. A cheap soldering iron can burn holes through regular plastic pots to get enough holes at the bottom of it. My cheap soldering iron actually failed recently, as it was too cheap hahaha. So I had to order a couple of extras (spares).

Note the holes along the bottom perimeter of the pot too. They're good for extra drainage. A soldering iron can be used to make holes similar to those ones.

Also - in photo #1, with the glass. If the plastic pot is left like that, with the glass stopping air-flow, then the water, media and roots can stew in the pot - and the roots can then run out of oxygen. Air flow through the pot keeps the water moving. Slow movement, but enough to keep the roots oxygenated adequately.

[Fran20]

Many thanks, SouthPark, for your detailed and extremely helpful response to my orchid SOS. My LC is now snugly ensconced in scoria. The pot I used, I believe, meets the good drainage and air-flow criteria you outlined (see attached pic). Thank you, also, for your explanation of what caused the problem in the 1st place. I remember that when the orchid bloomed, it became top heavy and tipped over, so I set it in the glass for support. I now know that was a mistake. Pursuing the orchid hobby is definitely a learning curve! Actually, a previous suggestion of yours to use scoria has helped to solve the problem because it's heavy enough to provide the roots with support and stability, but at the same time porous enough to provide good aeration. Plus, I've been finding it to be a really easy medium to work with. So thank you once again, until my next orchid emergency LOL

[SouthPark]

Absolutely welcome Fran.

The setup you have right there looks good. With that particular setup - as long as gentle air-flow is kept around the plant most of the time, and the temperature is warm and comfortable, then this orchid will have new roots pop out from the rhizome eventually. It will be ok to keep the media damp, which will help the roots stay moist so that the orchid gets the water it needs to recover - for growing new roots and for growing new shoots.