Orchid with yellowed leaves

[Mamalu]

Hi all! I’m new here, I live in San Diego and have all my orchids on my shaded patio. This one was bought in January in Hawaii, and shipped here. Was doing pretty well until we left for a weeklong camping trip. I watered before we left, and left it inside because I had just repotted it. When we got home all the leaves had turned yellow and it looked dried out. I watered again, nothing looked better, and some of the leaves just fell off. Tried soaking in water, not sure what to do. Anyone have any suggestions? I’m not sure exactly what type, but I think it’s a dendrobium.

[SouthPark]

That bulb might not grow anymore. But it's possible that a new shoot could eventually develop from the set of existing bulbs ----- and off-shoot.

You can repot the orchid into an airy-media, such as bark pieces, or scoria rock. Provide warm temperature and gentle air-movement. And provide medium level light ---- no direct sunlight for now if possible. The pot should have lots of holes for drainage at the bottom of it, and should allow any water to drain right out easily.

Then keep the outer parts of the pot reasonably wet - while the inner portions of the pot media should not be allowed to stay soggy wet. The inner portion of the pot media can be either made fairly dry ---- or just 'damp'. This is all to prevent root drowning.

In your case - it's hard to say whether the orchid became dehdrated due to the media drying right out while you were away, or whether the media was so wet and soggy that the roots drowned (which in turn prevents water from getting into the plant - which then leads to dead leaves).

Roots need oxygen either in the air and/or water to stay alive. If the water in the media doesn't move much or at all, then the roots can run out of oxygen. Airy media and gentle air-movement through the media can help avoid issues with roots ------ as well as avoiding roots from staying too wet for too long can help too.

[Roberta]

First, Welcome!

I can't tell from the very small photo what type of orchid it is. If a Dendrobium, it'll bounce back. If Cattleya type depends on the root system and whether there are live "eyes" (growth points) for new growth. Also I can't see what the roots look like.. again, knowing what type of orchid you're dealing with would help refine the advice.