Watering + root health = elusive ideal?
Good day, dear OrchidBoard community,
Today I come with a somewhat philosophical question. Please, bear with me as I give a bit of history to explain myself properly.
Two years ago, I overwatered my orchids wildly and ended up with a fungal problem which lead to black root tips, damping off, and other similar “pleasures”.
After an intensive fungicide treatment, things got better and I got wiser: I reviewed my culture and included bio-fungucide preventives. Roots grew beautifully, but I apparently went too dry because half of my phals grew MUCH shorter leaves (in some cases, a third of the original size!).
Now I am trying to establish the balance between the two extremes and find the balance to keep my plants happily moist, not too wet, letting them dry out just enough, but not too much. But what I have noticed is that when I increase the length of time they stay moist, I still get “unhappy” roots.
In most my pots I have roots with actively growing tips, yet, there are some that are “closed off”. Vegetative growth is ok – as in, it is happening ))) Still in early stages on phals, so too soon to tell whether the leaves will grow larger than the last season.
So, my actual questions are this:
- Is it possible to have 100% of roots in a pot healthy, happy, and actively growing? I mean, in nature plants do not always look their best – not in leaves, nor roots. I've seen plants from experienced orchid growers that did not have healthy looking roots - in some cases, had none at all, even though the plants were blooming beautifully. So, am I striving for an elusive ideal? How many happy - read: actively growing - roots do you normally have in your pots?
- If not, then what is the acceptable ratio of active to “sleeping” roots?
- Are root health and leaves health mutually exclusive to a point? Any tips on finding the balance are much appreciated ))
Many thanks to all who find the time to share their thoughts!
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