Help - new Zygopetalum dropping buds

[Emmsmum57]

Hi, I would really appreciate any help or advice. I bought this zygopetalum from a reputable seller last week and have been isolating it on a light, but north facing windowsill. This morning, I decided to place it with my phals on the east facing windowsill which they all love. However, as I was moving it, I noticed two yellowing leaves and some of the buds either wilting or dropping. I’ve watered it once during the week, and the soil feels lightly moist on top. Does anyone have any help or advice as to what might be happening and how to rectify it please?

[Shadeflower]

hi ems,
I would be interested where it came from. The pot reminds me of Homebase pots but I haven't seen them stock any zygo's at all this year.
If it were from homebase I wouldn't be too surprised.

There's probably a couple things wrong with this one. Firstly zygo's don't bloom this time of year which means it was being grown in a controlled artificially created environment - which will not be the same as your living room.

When sellers import plants like this they often have come from the other side of the world where it is spring.
Herre it is autumn.

So naturally the plant will drop all it's flowers and think what the world is going on.

To make matters worse the conditions will be different, probably colder than it was being grown and the substrate will be at the point of degrading. This will lead to the substrate staying too damp and degraded and the plant will suffer if it hasn't already. If it is a Homebase plant most of the time they manage to kill the roots before you buy it by watering too much. Their staff have no idea how to care for orchids so they all get a good soak to make sure they don't dry out...
You buy the plant and there is not much you can do to reverse the damage.

Anyway, bottom line is, it need fresh substrate to start with.

If the roots are rotten they need to be cut away and then the plant has to try to grow new ones.

All while it is thinking what the world, winter is approaching and a lot of times it is just too much even for a hybrid that has been bred to withstand abuse.

I'm sure it can make it but I also am not surprised *if it was a supermarket plant

It's not difficult to save it but it might take a couple of years and you will have to care for it well. It only flowers once a year and next year the shop will sell a fresh batch.

So. Decisions, decisions. I hope you choose to save it. Growing them is so much more fun than just buying them for the flowers.

If you need further help people will advise on any further queries you have.

[Emmsmum57]

Thanks for that. It wasn’t Homebase…..not sure if I am allowed to name the company but they also sell orchids on EBay. Thank you for all the info, I will check and treat the roots and repot. I don’t feel so bad about losing the lovely blooms if it’s not actually supposed to be blooming now!

[Shadeflower]

I know it was sold as being in bloom which is more appealing but in reality after getting sent through the post the blooms rarely last long.
It's ok though as long as the plant is healthy and this one has plenty of bulbs and looks ok.
If you are unsure about the roots please take a picture to get a second opinion.

[Emmsmum57]

I will check the roots carefully and thank you very much for your help. I’d hate to lose it, I’ve wanted a zygo for ages.

[Emmsmum57]

I’ve just prised it out of its pot, and this is what I’ve found. Surely this isn’t a healthy plant….some roots are soggy, some are just flat…..I’m not sure where to start with it to be honest.

Originally Posted by Shadeflower

hi ems,
I would be interested where it came from. The pot reminds me of Homebase pots but I haven't seen them stock any zygo's at all this year.
If it were from homebase I wouldn't be too surprised.

There's probably a couple things wrong with this one. Firstly zygo's don't bloom this time of year which means it was being grown in a controlled artificially created environment - which will not be the same as your living room.

When sellers import plants like this they often have come from the other side of the world where it is spring.
Herre it is autumn.

So naturally the plant will drop all it's flowers and think what the world is going on.

To make matters worse the conditions will be different, probably colder than it was being grown and the substrate will be at the point of degrading. This will lead to the substrate staying too damp and degraded and the plant will suffer if it hasn't already. If it is a Homebase plant most of the time they manage to kill the roots before you buy it by watering too much. Their staff have no idea how to care for orchids so they all get a good soak to make sure they don't dry out...
You buy the plant and there is not much you can do to reverse the damage.

Anyway, bottom line is, it need fresh substrate to start with.

If the roots are rotten they need to be cut away and then the plant has to try to grow new ones.

All while it is thinking what the world, winter is approaching and a lot of times it is just too much even for a hybrid that has been bred to withstand abuse.

I'm sure it can make it but I also am not surprised *if it was a supermarket plant

It's not difficult to save it but it might take a couple of years and you will have to care for it well. It only flowers once a year and next year the shop will sell a fresh batch.

So. Decisions, decisions. I hope you choose to save it. Growing them is so much more fun than just buying them for the flowers.

If you need further help people will advise on any further queries you have.

[Shadeflower]

yep, thats the problem right there.

Make sure you have some new substrate ready to repot this one.

I would start by getting a bucket of lukewarm water and place the whole orchid into it.

Then with your fingers gently try to seperate the roots and pry the old substrate out. It should all dissolve and crumble into the water. Feel every root as you are loosing them, If they feel hollow then give them a gentle tug and the loose coating should slide right off. Repeat this till the roots are all untangled. Hopefully there will be some roots left with some firmness to them still.

Any roots with firmness are still functional so they might all look the same but if they have some firmness they will still be able tow work.

Rinse the whole thing off, let the roots dry for a day. So just place it bareroot and let the roots dry completely. Then pot it into the new pot.

It might still show some signs of unhappyness after the repot so it will be hard to tell initially if it is doing ok. With some luck a fresh substrate should encourage new roots to form which should be visible around the base.

Keep an eye on the firmness of the leaves to judge how much to water, to start with take it slow on the watering, keep the whole pot dryier, rather than wet. It hasn't got many roots so initially just spraying the base of the plant a few times a week will be the best way to keep it hydrated.

[Emmsmum57]

Thank you so much, I feel really cross that the poor thing has been left like this. Thanks for helping me sort it out, I really appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Shadeflower

yep, thats the problem right there.

Make sure you have some new substrate ready to repot this one.

I would start by getting a bucket of lukewarm water and place the whole orchid into it.

Then with your fingers gently try to seperate the roots and pry the old substrate out. It should all dissolve and crumble into the water. Feel every root as you are loosing them, If they feel hollow then give them a gentle tug and the loose coating should slide right off. Repeat this till the roots are all untangled. Hopefully there will be some roots left with some firmness to them still.

Any roots with firmness are still functional so they might all look the same but if they have some firmness they will still be able tow work.

Rinse the whole thing off, let the roots dry for a day. So just place it bareroot and let the roots dry completely. Then pot it into the new pot.

It might still show some signs of unhappyness after the repot so it will be hard to tell initially if it is doing ok. With some luck a fresh substrate should encourage new roots to form which should be visible around the base.

Keep an eye on the firmness of the leaves to judge how much to water, to start with take it slow on the watering, keep the whole pot dryier, rather than wet. It hasn't got many roots so initially just spraying the base of the plant a few times a week will be the best way to keep it hydrated.

[Shadeflower]

We've all been there ems,
why do you think I could make such accurate assumptions.
It's unfortunate. Getting a healthy zygo is so important imo.

You get one that needs nursing back to health and you might as well get a seedling it takes that long to get either to bloom.

I know you bought this one and it has every chance to recover but just in case you still are annoyed by next year lets say you could think about getting a zygo seedling!

They can be a bit tricky but you can buy some here Established seedlings – The Equatorial Plant Company

The owner is very good, his plants are top notch and any questions he will be happy to answer so if you really are keen, maybe pop him a message, tell him you are after an older zygo and if he can help out.
He has far more than he lists on his website.

[Emmsmum57]

I like the idea of growing from seedlings, thank you for the link, I’ll check it out. I spent last night soaking and untangling the mess and found a good few hopefully viable roots amongst the mess, so I’m hopeful. Ive sprayed with peroxide, dried out overnight and repotted today in good quality bark. It’s looking much happier already so fingers crossed. Thanks again.