Store-bought Phalaenopsis dying after repotting - Orchid Board

HeelerMomWithNewOrchid · #1 11-26-2021, 03:00 PM

Hi,
I am very new to orchids. I got one for my birthday in August. I repotted it in Miracle Grow orchid mix a couple months ago. There are little gnats in it now. The flowers are dying. The leaves are weak. I have a better soil mix, I think, coming from Repotme in a day or so. Should I repot it again so soon? And how do I get rid of the pests. I think maybe I over did it trying to get rid of them last week by rubbing the leaves down with 3% hydrogen peroxide, and then spraying some organic plant soap on them. I don't know if it is the bugs or me that is killing my plant. The leaves are still green.
Thanks for any thoughts.
Karen

Shadeflower · #2 11-26-2021, 03:26 PM

Hi karen, you have to know what you are treating with and what for. gnats live in the substrate so treating the leaves is a waste of time for them.
Hydrogen peroxide is like diluted bleach. Avoid using it unless you know what you are doing with it.

Basically if it is safe to drink then it is safe to use on orchids. If it is not safe to drink then be cautious using whatever it is.

I'd throw out all the old substrate and clean the pot with soapy water. Add a couple of drops of dishwashing liquid into a container of lukewarm water and dunk the whole orchid and leave it to soak for half an hour. That will kill any gnats on the plant, the new substrate should be gnat free so just dispose of any old substrate an start over, giving the orchid a bit of a clean using a safe product like soap.

Although you can use diluted bleach I'd leave the peroxide and other disinfecting solutions for cleaning surfaces. Although alcohol can be used safely to clean leaves.

You can buy products that you add to your water that eliminate gnats but gnats are generally easy to eliminate just by throwing them in the garbage(ie the old substrate). They feed on decaying matter so are a sign it needs replacing. The repotme media should be far better.

There might be a few gnats that still buzz around but the important bit is to eliminate theri food and breeding source and they dissapear by themselves.

Dusty Ol' Man · #3 11-26-2021, 03:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeelerMomWithNewOrchid

Hi,
I am very new to orchids. I got one for my birthday in August. I repotted it in Miracle Grow orchid mix a couple months ago. There are little gnats in it now. The flowers are dying. The leaves are weak. I have a better soil mix, I think, coming from Repotme in a day or so. Should I repot it again so soon? And how do I get rid of the pests. I think maybe I over did it trying to get rid of them last week by rubbing the leaves down with 3% hydrogen peroxide, and then spraying some organic plant soap on them. I don't know if it is the bugs or me that is killing my plant. The leaves are still green.
Thanks for any thoughts.
Karen

Don't worry about the gnats as they won't harm the plant. I'm not sure what the Miracle Grow mix is, but if you have a suitable mix coming you could remove the plant from the pot, rinse off the roots with a hose or in the sink. (Use a sink strainer to catch any debris.) And sit it bare root in a vase or other suitable container until your mix arrives. A couple days won't hurt it and will give you an opportunity to inspect the roots. Don't cut anything and don't use hydrogen peroxide on the roots. Once you repot it things should begin to improve. And remember - KEEP IT SIMPLE!

HeelerMomWithNewOrchid · #4 11-26-2021, 04:52 PM

Thank you for the replies. It seems like there are a ton of different ideas on how to keep orchids online. I'll start coming here for information. This is the Miracle Grow soil mix.
Access Denied

estación seca · #5 11-26-2021, 07:19 PM

Welcome to the Orchid Board!

What are your temperatures? What kind of light is it getting? How are you watering? What kind, and size of pot did you use?

The flowers eventually fall off, but the plant should grow.

Read a few pages of a good sticky thread here. From the left yellow menu choose Forums then Beginners. Near to top look for The Phal abuse stops here.

tmoney · #6 11-26-2021, 11:03 PM

hello! well, you said my two least favorite words...miracle gro. in my preorchid days i had very bad mg experiences, and then our first orchid repots were put into miracle gro orchid mix and it basically killed them. then we joined orchid board

so yeah, my humble newby advice is, ditch the mg products and try to find some legitimate orchid media. best of luck and welcome to the orchidboard!