New Angraecum Magdalenae flower dying after purchase, possible black dry tip on roots - Orchid Board

Kyclimberchick · #1 08-04-2022, 02:52 AM

New to board and first post. Started with Phalaenopsis orchids 18 mo ago. Purchased my first angraecum magdalenae. (It was an impulse buy at an orchid show.)

Orchid had two flowers when I purchased it 4 days ago. Now, one of the flowers is turning translucent and dying and has a yellow stem. The other flower is still healthy looking.

It appears to be potted in a chunky bark mix. Through the holes in the bottom, I can see some roots but they might have a dry black tip. It also looks like it's sitting on Styrofoam in the middle. Seller did not repot and told me to wait 2 yrs before repotting. (Have read they are quite fussy about repotting and their roots...) I have watered every other day but now that I realize I can see roots, I think I'll water daily if they look dry visually (according to some guides on the internet).

So my question is, is it something I'm doing wrong or should do differently, shock from new environment, or normal process for this flower to be dying. I do see now in the original picture, this flower (on left) did have just a little bit of discoloration at the tips so maybe it was near the end of its life? I have a cool environment in my apartment, basically outside humidity (San Francisco - windows open daily for airflow) with misting, huge north and west windows (not in direct sun) and a plant light until 10pm.

Thanks for any help! Flower pics attached. Will try to get root pic soon.

Louis_W · #2 08-04-2022, 08:05 AM

Awesome plant!

Everything looks fine to me. It's not weird for flowers to die on a new plant. The transition can be a little stressful. Same with a couple dead roots.

I do think you are probably watering too much though... sounds like the media is fresh a very well drained so it probably won't be an issue now, but when the media breaks down a little, daily watering could easily kill the plant. I suggest once or twice a week as a starting point and see how the plant responds.

Dusty Ol' Man · #3 08-04-2022, 09:10 AM

If your light is on till 10pm it sounds like around 15 or 16 hrs of light a day. I would cut that back to closer to 12. Otherwise it sounds like you have a healthy plant. I agree with Louis on the watering.
Welcome to the Orchidboard.

Keysguy · #4 08-04-2022, 10:44 AM

Your plant looks fine. Unfortunately the flowers don't last forever and you've got one that has moved into the "I'm out of here" mode. That often happens sooner than normal when plants in bloom or even in spike are moved around to multiple environments. A lot of them just do not embrace change well. Kinda like a lot of us.

So, to answer your question about water......
It depends!

It depends on the environment you can provide for it.

I agree with Dusty that you're probably a bit on the long side for light. This time of year 12 is good. How are your temps and more important than temp is humidity?

In general..... these guys are epiphytes so loose airy media is perfect. I'd actually water good 2x/week during the summer and mist every day if you can.
Feed weakly weekly and make sure it has good air movement so it dries out between waterings.

In the winter, cut the water in half.

estación seca · #5 08-04-2022, 02:18 PM

Welcome to the Orchid Board! I grew orchids in my dorm when I was in school in SF 1978-82.

Have a look here:
Desert Valley OS: Phyllis Prestia: Orchids of Madagascar

Kyclimberchick · #6 08-04-2022, 06:36 PM

Here are the root pics as best as I could get them. I'm basically just peeking in the holes...

So it looks like after the white styrofoam in the middle, there's no more potting mix. It's just a bunch of roots at the bottom. That was concerning me in terms of watering. If there's nothing holding moisture around those roots, they're going to dry out really fast. You can see one of them does have a dried black tip.

I'm going to ask the seller but I don't think he repotted this plant. I'm guessing he got it this way from the distributor. Is the styrofoam common? Or was it just to elevate a very small plant in the pot when it was young?

Thanks everyone!

Roberta · #7 08-04-2022, 09:45 PM

First, Welcome!

The styrofoam "peanuts" were probably used to position the plant, or for drainage, or both. My experience with Angcm magdalenae is that it really needs good drainage - which that pot isn't going to provide. It likes to be a little drier in the winter but not bone dry. It's a relatively cool-grower, will put up with daytime heat if it can cool down at night. For your plant, once the bloom finishes (enjoy it and especially smell it at night, the fragrance is wonderful) I'd suggest moving it to a plastic basket. You can do that without disturbing the roots much, just slide it out of the pot, drop into basket and leave the medium in place. Fill in with bark, or loosely-packed sphagnum that will be very airy and tend to dry out.

In San Francisco, it should be quite happy growing outside, should love the humidity, your cool apartment should be fine too. (The Baker culture sheet in Orchidwiz indicates that in habitat it gets a temperature range from 91 deg F to 30 deg F . It is native to fairly high elevations. So you don't have to worry about winter very much if at all. (Again, just dryer in winter when it's cold) I agree with Keysguy, you should not give much more than 12 hours a day of light... it comes from an equatorial region where days and nights are pretty much equal. (It really doesn't need a lot of light even during the day... more like a Phal or Paph) And the fragrance develops in low evening light, you want to enjoy it!