Floppy leaves on my Phal Artic Dawn

[orchidork]

i am a new orchid grower, this only being my second year. i currently have four orchids that I fuss over. They are all doing well, except my phalaenopsis artic dawn. This orchid has several small flowers with little blush centres and is just beautiful. The grower that I purchased it from, has it in moss in a plastic container. It has been blooming since early early march and still has a few flowers that arent fully open. Last year, I waited until the flowers were finished and then I decided to repot it into coconut bark. I lived in an attic apartment during the time which has NO sun. So, eventually, it was just dead and I cried. However, this spring, i bought the same orchid again and i just love it. The problem that I am having now is that the leaves (bottom) are very floppy and look a little wrinkled almost. I am concerned that the roots are just rotting away. The moss is always damp, even if I dont water it for a good week! So, i am just not sure what to do about it. Replant? Different pot? Do I have a disease?

any suggestions?

Thanks

[Jenn]

Hmmm. If it's just one of the bottom leaves, this might be normal. My phals that are mature sometimes shed a bottom leaf during their growing season. However, if you are concerned with rot, I'd pull the plant out if you can and have a look at the roots. You more than likely will not lose the blooms even if you have to repot... but you might. It's always better to save the plant!

If you find rot, pull all the old moss away from the roots and trim back any dead stuff. If you have poor air circulation in your home, you might want to consider a bark medium instead of moss as it will allow for faster drying. I like to mix bark and moss personally! I always use clay pots due to the fact that I love to over water and they dry a lot faster than plastic. If you don't tend to over water, plastic might be a good choice, especially with bark.

Hope this helps! Pictures always help with diagnosing a problem too

[jkofferdahl]

It's really easy to overwater when Phals are in moss. If this happens, and you lose some roots, you can get symptoms like you describe. It's quite possible that is your situation.

I would personally take a course that protects the plant over the flowers, even though it means losing the flowers, but before doing ANYTHING I'd see if I could pull aside enough of the moss to get a good look at the roots. If they look fine then I'd pretty much end there and presume that the plant is just naturally losing a leaf or two, which Phals may do when in growth.

However, if the roots like stressed, or even some are dead, I'd lop off the flower stem (and put it in a vase so I could still enjoy the flowers) and repot the plant. Flower stems take a lot of energy, which the plant will need if the roots are bad. I'm not personally a fan of growing in moss, so would use bark or osmunda fiber.

[priz_m]

I almost lost a phal once to root rot because I waited for it to stop blooming, it came in moss too, and yes I am an overwaterer . Fortunately it recovered after 3 or so months, it hasn't spiked yet, but I am very pleased with it being alive.

I agree with jkofferdahl plant comes first than flowers. Try to repot it in a more air friendly medium like bark and take a closer look at the root system, maybe there will not be need to cut anything back

Some phals are though enough to resist repotting while in bloom and still manage not to lose any flowers.

Either or best growing wishes! keep us posted

just my

[susiep]

Hello Orchidork! I had a similar situation with a big phal a few months ago. The wilting was actually due to not enough air to the roots. (See my thread "Monster Phal has wilted leaves") I lined a wire basket with metal screen and repotted the phal in loose, very chunky bark mix. Air was able to circulate around the roots and all the leaves firmed up (over a couple weeks). This plant had several bloom spikes, flowers and buds and I chose not to cut them. It didn't loose anything during the repotting and recovery. So don't wait, repot now. It probably won't affect the flowers and will save the plant in the long run. Be sure to use a basket or clay pot with a bark or other chunky mix. That way you can water as much as you want or need to without worry. Just my .

[orchidork]

thanks everyone! WHAT GREAT advice! I am a huge overwatererer and I am afraid that the rots are just sitting in that plastic pot..with no air..rotting. SO, I am going to take your advice and repot to get some air to those roots and hope for the best for the flowers. My concern, as you have all mentioned, is the plant and not the flower. also, has anyone put their phals outdoors in the summer is partial sun? i have a vanda that I just put outside, and I was wondering if I coudl do the same with my other varieties.

thanks everyone! what speedy responses!
orchidork

[HorseChick]

I grow all of my potted Phals in moss with no problems at all. The secret, for me, is to let the moss get dry and crunchy feeling between waterings. I also use clay pots as they help to wick the moisture out of the moss.

I fertilize at 1/4 strength when I water and I water them very thoroughly. I don't touch them again until dry.

I had a Phal. I-Hsin Salmon growing like this for over four years with no problems. I finally mounted it this year as it was outgrowing the pot and had too many bloom spikes for me to want to continue using stakes to support them.

I've included a photo below to show you all the healthy roots the plant had when I pulled it from the pot.

[orchidork]

wow that is beaut! really nice. I see that in the end...the problem is moisture. If I am going to use moss, than i need to let it dry out and make sure the water isnt trapped there like it is now in that terrible plastic pot.

thanks everyone

[flowerpower]

I don't water my orchids weekly if my gut instinct tells me otherwise. I am conservative with water after reading orchid boards! I have a Phal in a 6 inch pot and a generic orchid compost. I only water that every 10 days max and as the weather cools off I may even lengthen that towards every 2 weeks.

My other Phal is in the same mix but a smaller pot. I usually water that one every 8 or 9 days when the moisture on the side of the pot has disappeared. I push my finger an inch down too.

I water all my houseplants conservatively, I have a lot of different ones but they all respond positively to a "less is more" approach. If your media is very dense then do hold back.

[seamonkey]

If you're an overwaterer, sphag is not for you. I'm an underwaterer and sphag has probably kept many of my plants alive.