Tiny tiny survivor / abused phal

[denisrosset]

I got this orchid from work two years ago, along with a second one. Some sort of moss in the potting media and rotting roots all over.

I cut everything that was not looking firm (i.e. most of it). The other one died, this one lost most of its leaves, and is now growing pretty well, but with leaves around half the size of what was there before.

Do such orchids recover with time? It's cute, but I want to be honest with potential future owners if I give it away.

[Roberta]

That little guy is actually doing quite nicely, with those lovely new roots. Now all it needs is love. The plant can't do much growing until it gets a root system that can sustain it, and those new roots are key. You need, most importantly, to not touch or otherwise damage the little green root tips, because you want them to keep growing. Actually, it might be safer to just keep misting the new roots for awhile, to let them get longer before taking the risk. Then a gentle repot might be in order, just to get them into the medium. But for now, I think just keep doing what you are doing. Orchids teach patience...they don't do anything fast.

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[neophyte]

Wow, congrats on the wonderful recovery! Yes, orchids can be slow growers.

About promoting more robust growth: Considering you are growing in bark medium, you may want to increase your watering (although that advice is just based on the appearance of the surface bark in the photo; if it is already moist underneath, don't overwater.) You can also consider fertilizing more in the summer and increasing overall temperatures – Phals are generally warm growers, although the hybrids are a bit less picky.

Also, it's generally recommended to disturb the plant as little as possible, but the plant does look like it's growing out of the medium, so at some point you may want to repot it lower in the substrate.

I hope this helps! You are doing a very good job taking care of it already.

Edit: looks like we posted our replies within a minute of each other, Roberta!

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by denisrosset

and is now growing pretty well, but with leaves around half the size of what was there before.

Do such orchids recover with time?

The visible signs of growing new leaves and roots and getting larger etc automatically means that the orchid is recovering with time - even now as I type.

The conditions you provided it are satisfactory - so it is making nice progress in terms of growing.

[denisrosset]

Thanks to all! Indeed, most of the leaves you see are post-recovery growth, for a two years period. Indeed, orchids teach patience!

I just got in touch with a friend who has a lovely indoor setup (humidity control, artificial light), much better than my cold winter windows (the last winter, they were in my office with much better conditions).