Lou Sneary in big troubl - help needed

[Phyrex]

I was very happy to reflower this plant but what I found this morning did not make me very happy. I saw that one of the 2 flowers that were left, after I had accidentally sprayed the plant with fertilized water, had wilted already and had fallen of the spike. Then, I saw the worst thing ever. One leaf had fallen off and when I checked the others they fell of with the slightest touch. I'm assuming it's black rot which could put my whole collection in danger. I separated from the rest of the plants as soon as I saw it this morning but you can see form the pictures that the last two leaves are still properly attached. My two worries are this:

1. What can I do to prevent this from spreading to the rest of my collection if it hasn't yet done so; or how can I stop it if it has spread already???
2. Can I still save this plant??

[bodaciousbonsai]

i would dig a hole in the ground give it your last respects.

[neb]

It looks like you got water between the leaves. It may survive but it will be a long road just keep it warm and in a humid environment with good air flow. Why was the plant buried in sphagnum?

[Phyrex]

I guess putting it back in sphag is my fault. It came in sphag potted very tightly from the grower, so I put it back in sphag. I don't have any Vanda's and only Neos so I figured it would be fine in sphag. I guess it teaches me to always research the culture and not to assume anything.

[orchidsamore]

It looks like classic fusarium fungus. It starts in the roots and then symptoms spread to the leaves. I say symptoms since the way fusarium kills plants is by blocking all the capillary action that brings water from the roots to the plant.

The leaves die from lack of water regardless of how much water you give it.

It is throuhout your roots and nothing will cure it so destroy the plant.

In a Cattleya you can often cut back from the bad section into a good section of plant and save part of it. Your plant does not have any good section to save.

[Hera]

I think it was potted too deep into the sphag. The water was sitting in the folds of the leaves for too long. When you repot, follow the recomendations for traditional Neo potting and I think it will recover. Treat it with an anti-fungal. Water it lightly. Be careful that when you water, that it only gets on the roots.

[Jorch]

It looks too far gone to be saved.. sorry

Planting in sphag is not a problem, but if you have pictures of the plant from the original grower, you can see that only the roots are in sphag with the stem exposed. I agree with Hera that it is planted too deep in sphag and the sphag doesn't dry out fast enough in the fall/winter season causing rot.

Good luck with the next one, I'm sure you'll buy a replacement plant next year LOL

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

If you try these again, I recommend large grade fir bark and a thin top layer of moss instead of pure sphagnum moss. Try and find one where the roots are literally a sprawling mess that's climbing over the edges of the pot. These were the ones that did well for me when I had one a long, long time ago.

They're pretty easy to grow. Can also multi-spike and are fragrant.

Flowers resemble Neostylis with blue tips. The spike grows upright and has mulitple blooms on it.

They like quite a bit of water. Reduce watering in the cooler months just a tad.

Bright shade to moderate light.

These are nice.