New to this, question about orchid leaves

[MomKB]

Hello,
I received an orchid for Mother's Day, and have been trying to learn and take care of it. I knew basically nothing about it before. I attached some pictures of the leaves. It had two cuts in the one leaf when I got it, but I have just noticed several small holes and white spots that weren't there before. I know it's not in a great pot, but there is some drainage in the plastic liner, which we raised up inside the decorative pot, so there would be somewhere for the water to drain. I don't want to repot it because it's blooming, and also I have no idea what I'm doing.
Thanks for any input!
Melissa

[Roberta]

First, welcome!

The cut or broken bits on the leaves, that it came with, no harm at all. Where you're seeing evidence of new damage, I'm strongly suspecting a critter... bug or snail... that may be lurking around. So far I still don't see anything that would be too worrisome, but time to look at the rest of the picture. First, I'd suggest repotting. Phalaenopsis orchids usually don't suffer at all from repotting in bloom if you are careful so that they don't get bumped around. And for the longer term health of the plant, really important. Those flimsy plastic pots that get put inside decorative pots usually have really poor drainage. And the sphagnum moss can be deadly to roots too... it's often seriously compacted in the middle (cutting off air circulation) So... my suggestion would be to slip the plant out of that plastic pot, and soak it for a few hours to loosen up the sphagnum. Then remove as much as you can without trashing roots - if a little is left clinging to them, not a problem. Really bad roots can be removed... but don't be too aggressive. Then, repot into a pot that is of similar size (probably a little larger but not much) with small bark being my choice of medium - fresh sphagnum works too, it depends on how you water. Sphagnum holds a lot of water, so if you can't water often it can be a good choice.Bbark drains better, dries out faster. Which is great for the plant, but you do have to water more often. There are some other choices too, I am sure that other contributors to the Board will jump in with ideas. Repotting into fresh medium will very likely remove the source of the attack, and that would be the first thing to do before even thinking about any treatment. (Any treatment would first need some idea of what the attacker might be)

At any rate, it looks like you have a healthy plant, and you have come to the right place to get information to keep it healthy.

[MomKB]

Thank you so much. Should I soak it in just regular tap water?

[DrDawn]

Yup, tap water is fine! (This is a point of preference as you get more experienced, but for your first orchid, and a phalaenopsis, tap is fine! I use tap water for all my orchids.)

[aliceinwl]

Tap water is fine as long as it’s not soft water: they don’t like the salt.

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by MomKB

I don't want to repot it because it's blooming, and also I have no idea what I'm doing.
Thanks for any input!

Melissa ------ welcome and thanks for posting. Maybe you forgot to present your question.

Anyway ----- I quite like the shape of one of your leaves.



Also, it's great that you're considering drainage! The following information about drainage and watering etc may be useful to you later : Click Here and Click Here and Click Here and Click Here.

[estación seca]

This is a long thread, so you don't need to read all of it - but it gives a good overview of growing Phalaenopsis for beginners:
The Phal abuse ends here.

This kind of orchid lives on tree branches. The roots are exposed to air all the time. Many people new to orchids overwater them and drown the roots. The idea is to keep the roots moist but well-aerated. If the potting medium is breaking down and turning to mush, it is time to repot. Regular potting soil is harmful because that is intended for plants that grow in the ground, not on branches. Do a little reading and it will become more clear.

[MomKB]

Thanks, everyone!

[MomKB]

I repotted it this morning. I am nervous, hoping I didn't mess anything up. It was harder than I thought to remove the old moss. I put in a few pieces of styrofoam in with the fresh moss, and removed two roots that didn't look so good.

[Roberta]

Looks to me like you did very well! It did need the repot, I am sure that it will do much better for you.