Doritis in water culture, advice please!

[greenbean]

I posted this in the S/H forum too, but thought it would get more responses here. I've been reading about water culture and really wanted to try it. I just received a small division of Doritis pulcherrima 'Coerules' (this is what the tag said, but I'm guessing it's actually var. 'Coerulea', because nothing came up in searches under 'Coerules'). I know it's a little risky, but it was a free plant, so I thought it would make a good lab rat. I put another part of it in an old orange bag with some moss around the roots to preserve moisture. I've never heard of Doritis grown either way, so I'm trying it.

Currently, I have it in a small shotglass under a mini "greenhouse" on top of a light fixture so that it receives heat to promote root growth. There is a very dilute fertlizer in the water. I don't have any algae yet, but I have a covered glass of water under the light to attempt to grow a stock algae source. I treated the plant with listerine, because I've read that it can be used to sterilize orchids and I am a poor college student without easy access to other materials.

The clouds have moved in, so for the next week or more, the chid receives less than 1000 fc, perhaps as little as 100. I intend to wait for new root growth before I move it into a brighter location.

I know that Orchidineverwindow has experience with Phals in water culture, so I was specifically wondering if you have problems with water soaking up into the base of the leaves and, if so, how you treat or prevent it. Currently, water seems to soak up to the second leaf but does not make it to the top two leaves. Also, should I maybe try to get my hands on hydrogen peroxide or something better than listerine?

Any other advice anyone can give me will be most welcome! I always forget or don't think of something.

Both set-ups below

orange bag wrap
Attachment 25135

water culture
Attachment 25136
Attachment 25137
Attachment 25138

Thanks!

[Bird Song Farm]

I'm having a lot of trouble with this plant and I think I'm going to lose it. Will follow this thread with interest and hope I can save mine.
Al

[let_it_grow]

I have a bit of experience with water culture but I was not a big fan. 1st off, most roots cant adapt to the constant amount of water so the existing roots die in replacement of new roots. I kinda freaked out cause I felt like I was killing them. The 2nd reason is that I tried it with a paph, her roots took to water culture well and none of them died but the water level to cover the roots was too high for my comfort and I ended up with an icky buildup of fertilizer and hard water stains on my plant. The last reason is that I picked the wrong plant and did it at the wrong time. I had a NOID Den that was looking bad so I thought I would try water culture. I found out my Den is probably the kind that needs a winter rest, although I read in a few places that it didn't matter. It did matter, my Den lost all roots and since it was basically dormant it grew nothing, no new roots or canes. I guess what I'm saying is that the success of water culture is very dependant on the type of plant you have. Some people have lots of success and grow amazing plants. I did not. A little side note, the Den has been moved to s/h where she is tented and I'm happy to report that she is growing a keiki.

[greenbean]

Maybe a little early for an update, but...5 days now since starting my Doritis in water culture. There has been some mold in the last two days. Some was on the tip of the longest root, so I took it out and applied some rubbing alcohol (only thing I had). That patch has not reappeared. Another patch of mold was growing on the dead base of a flower stalk which I have been unable to completely remove. I've had to treat it twice now and will continue to watch closely.

I've been changing the water for the orchid every other day. No visible algae yet in my stock container.

New root!!!! There is already a new root tip poking through the base of a leaf. The other roots have shown no signs yet of dying and seem quite happy.

The two oldest leaves are declining, but they looked so bad that I was expecting this. The top two leaves look healthy and the youngest may have even grown a little.

Here's a pic of the new root emerging. Just looks like a little bright green dot.

[greenbean]

Ok, some clear results now. The division in water culture is starting to grow pretty fast. The tiny new leaf it had when I first got it has almost doubled in size. The new root got set back a little because it got damaged when I removed the lowest leaf. In removing that leaf, I also uncovered a potential spike, on the slim chance the plant hasn't been shocked too much.

The second division has not changed much. The leaves remain firm and green. This is the one wrapped in an old orange bag and hung up. I've been soaking it for about 15 minutes every day. I think I'll be putting it up for trade.

I'd post pics, but I tried to take a few and they just didn't show the changes very well.

[ottercottage]

Hi, Evan, I'm following what you are doing with great interest. I haven't done a lot with water culture because we are next to the ocean and battle constantly against mildew and mold. It's a tricky balance between temps, lights and humidity. Also, I've gotten somewhat lazy as the collection is so large, and haven't tried a lot of experimenting. Good for you, and keep us informed!

[greenbean]

Thanks for the interest Ottercottage, Bird Song Farm, and let it grow. I'm keeping a daily record and taking pics about once a week, so I'll have lots to share.

Wait, on second thought, maybe I'll just post a summary...

[let_it_grow]

I would be really interested in the water culture photos. My plants bombed in water culture but are really liking the s/h. I have considered wrapping a pile of bark with a plant in it in cheesecloth like you did with your orange bag so I'd like to see how that went. Do you just dip it to water? How fast does it dry out?

[greenbean]

Let it grow, I soak the bagged Doritis in a dilute fert. solution every morning at 7:30ish for 15-20 minutes, but I have forgotten it in there a couple times for over 30 min. With the spanish moss wrapped around the roots, it seems to stay moist until the evening. It's dry by the next morning. I change the solution weekly. I'm not sure how much the spanish moss is doing, since there's one root that sticks out and it usually stays moist until late afternoon or early evening. With plants that like to dry out more than Doritis, I would guess that you should not soak it for quite as long.

I haven't noticed any mold or other disease problems with the orange bag, yet. Meanwhile, I just removed the biggest root on the WC Doritis because it was starting to got soft. It has a new root coming in though, so no biggy. I think I got rid of all the mold 3 or 4 days ago. No more has reappeared.

Wrapping the one Doritis in an orange bag did make kind of a neat presentation, so I say try your chid in cheese cloth! Experimenting is fun! And if it doesn't work, you still learn something!

[let_it_grow]

The WC Doritis root getting soft is sorta expected. Old roots are not used to being submerged constantly so the plant needs to produce new roots that can. As long as you have some new root growth SINCE being in WC i wouldnt worry. I had tried WC with a Den.. oh bad idea.... some good came of it though.... i came so close to killing her that she produced 2 keikis as a desperate attempt to live on lol. I killed my plant so good it gave me 2 more. I thought about trying a Phal in the cheesecloth. The spanish moss doesnt hold much water at all. I went to a florist to order sphagnum moss and they got spanish moss instead... (how could they not know the difference? I even brought some sphag with me). I tool the unlabeled sealed box home and opened it... to my surprise it was dyed spanish moss. I wanted to soak it in water and show her the green mess that leaked out of the moss. I was so mad... that could have killed my plants. Long story short... the spanish moss doesnt hold much water so its prob good for avoiding root rot. Keep us updated with pictures and I'll let ya know if I try the cheesecloth... might do that tonight