Help! Those which I know nothing about have arrived!

[KathyKayserKonig]

Dear Orchid Friends,

The orchids that I ordered on Ebay have arrived and I think I am in serious trouble. I estimate they were in the mail for a week. (Incidentally the package they were sent in was crushed and was not marked "fragile" or "live plants" or anything of that nature.) So, all have them have green leaves but the majority of their roots are all black. ONe plant, which I believe is the Vanda, has a huge amount of roots, all of which are totally black. Some of them have roots which are white and straw-like. It doesn't look good but wanted to get some opinions before I e-mailed the seller. Am I correct in assuming black roots are dead? I have everything soaking in a SuperThrive mixture. How long should I let them soak?

Some of the leaves are stiff and green while others are quite limp. What does this tell me?

Any thoughts / ideas and prayers are all welcomed and appreciated. Thank you so much everyone! Kathy

P.S. I've taken pictures of everything but don't have time this second to post them. May later if you think it would help you tell me what to do here.

[Zoi2]

Pictures will definitely help.
Joann

[KathyKayserKonig]

I am trying to post right now. I keep getting a error message that says I am missing some sort of security tag. Never received that message before. Will keep trying.

[KathyKayserKonig]

Attachment 34030





Here are some pictures of a few of the plants. Any thoughts? Thanks again!


EDIT: Ok, I promise - these were much clearer on my computer. I must not have loaded them correctly or something...

[natasha]

try to soak the roots before planting. i think they are still ok

[KathyKayserKonig]

Originally Posted by natasha

try to soak the roots before planting. i think they are still ok

Natasha, How long would you soak? Thanks for your kind reply. Kathy

[natasha]

Originally Posted by KathyKayserKonig

Natasha, How long would you soak? Thanks for your kind reply. Kathy

i actually never time the soaking process. but i read somewhere up to 30 mins? maybe someone else can give a better figure. usually i soak the roots only, not the whole plant

[Swamper]

They look pretty hurt. I think you should email them and let them know you are not pleased with what you received. Did you have a say in the shipping time frame? They definitely should have at least labeled it fragile and live plants. Sorry you got a bum shipment. I will cross my fingers for you and a prayer if you think it will help.

[KathyKayserKonig]

Originally Posted by Swamper

They look pretty hurt. I think you should email them and let them know you are not pleased with what you received. Did you have a say in the shipping time frame? They definitely should have at least labeled it fragile and live plants. Sorry you got a bum shipment. I will cross my fingers for you and a prayer if you think it will help.

Thank you Swamper. I plan on e-mailing tomorrow. Am too upset to do so right now. Prayers are always appreciated. Thanks so much!

[orchidbingo]

Originally Posted by KathyKayserKonig

Thank you Swamper. I plan on e-mailing tomorrow. Am too upset to do so right now. Prayers are always appreciated. Thanks so much!

Hi Kathy,

I'm sad that you had such a bad experience with your orchid purchase. Don't get too discouraged because there are a lot of good vendors out there.

I love to watch orchids grow so I usually buy compots containing about 50-100 tiny seedlings and pot them out into 2.5 inch pots.

I potted out 2 compots on May 9th and I now have many, many seedlings of Epc. Siam Jade and Blc. Dals'Rapture Watercolors; all are doing great. They were tiny-- less the half an inch first set of leaves base-tip; no pseudobulbs. Quite a few of them are now over 3-4 inches base to tip with 2 pseudobulbs plus new growth.

I got the compots on sale-- buy 1 get 1 free for $25 shipping included! This is a very inexpensive way to get orchids and you don't have to flask. The trouble is, who wants 50 plants of the same mericlone !!!

I would be happy to share some of these seedlings with you. They are growing fast; taking up more and more precious growing space.

Danville is only about an hour or so from Macomb and I frequently shop in West Burlington. I would be glad to meet you at the mall and hand you a couple of orchid seedlings. They should be good for adoption in several weeks.

Don't get too discouraged and don't give up on orchids!

I'll say a prayer for you.



Bingo

links to picture ( I hope)

T-4120 Epc. Siam Jade 'AVO'-compots

T-4452 Blc. Dal's Rapture 'Water Colors'-compot