Phal going down hill fast - Orchid Board

Melody · #1 05-07-2010, 04:27 PM

History:
I've had this phal since Feb. and it wasn't in the best of shape when I got it...in fact it looked like it had fallen off the truck (broken/cracked leaves). It came in moss and I re-potted it on April 8th when I started to suspect it had some root rot. It did. It lost maybe almost 1/2 of it's roots to rot, but the good news is it had lots and lots of roots...so I wasn't too worried about it. But since then it has dropped 2 leaves and is working on dropping a third.
The first leaf I thought may have been an age thing...it was the lowest leaf and smaller than the rest. The 2nd is a mystery as I didn't check the plant for 2 days and found the leaf had fallen off into the dog bowl on the floor. Didn't see that one coming. The 3rd I've been waiting for it to drop since I got it since it has always been barely attached to begin with.

Problem: I'm worried about this plant...dropped leaves, no signs of new growth. I dug out some of the bark and checked the roots today and it looks like there's more rot *sigh... don't know what I should do. My other phal seems to be doing ok, but it's in a different room...would it help if I moved this one over with it?

Growing conditions:
I water twice a wk (about every 4 days) and Fertilize (Orchid Plus 20-14-13) once every 2 wks. Just started this plant on superthrive every watering for the last 2 wks. It's potted in a clear pot in bark and I keep it under a grow light along with a large African violet (which may actually be shading it some).

Oh and it had 2 spikes, one I cut all the way down, the other just partly do to it having a bit of a growth on a node (there when I got it, hasn't changed), and I thought I should leave it in case it ends up wanting to die on me and make a kieki...lol

Here are a few recent photos, I had just watered/fert. Sorry for the lengthy post...trying to be thorough.

en3rmax · #2 05-07-2010, 04:46 PM

From the pictures it looks like the roots are getting too much water, you say you water it about every 4 days, if it was me i'd water it about every 7 to 10 days. let the roots go silvery before you water again.

Make sure all the excess water drains out of the pot too when you do water.

Hope this helps

RosieC · #3 05-07-2010, 04:47 PM

Well after loss of roots I would not be suprised to see loss of leaves follow for several weeks afterwards. This happens while it adjusts to the number of leaves it can support on the remaining roots.

More of a concern is that you still have root rot. It looks like it's in a small pot (what size is the pot?) but watering twice a week sounds a lot to me although I don't know what your conditions are like. I would make sure it dries between waterings at least while it recoveres, so as to ensure you are not keeping it too wet.

Melody · #4 05-07-2010, 05:03 PM

Alright, I can change the watering schedule. That's easy enough. It's currently in a 4 in. pot. Should I do anything about the rotted roots (like cut and repot) or just leave it alone? I'm still thinking about moving it to the other room with the other phal. It's a much warmer room and I have a fan on in it. And I have noticed that the other one seems to dry out quicker.

WhiteRabbit · #5 05-07-2010, 05:11 PM

I have bamboo skewers - like for kabobs - in all my orchid pots - it is extremely helpful in determining when to water

RosieC · #6 05-07-2010, 05:13 PM

A smaller pot might help, depending on the number of roots left. I use 3" and smaller for phals recovering from rot.

barkingsquirrell · #7 05-07-2010, 05:38 PM

Sorry nothing to add to this as I'm still a newb here on OB.

@ WhiteRabbit - great skewer idea. I'm actually going to steal that one and do it when I get home tonight. Thank you!

WhiteRabbit · #8 05-07-2010, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by barkingsquirrell

Sorry nothing to add to this as I'm still a newb here on OB.

@ WhiteRabbit - great skewer idea. I'm actually going to steal that one and do it when I get home tonight. Thank you!

hehe I can't take credit - I read here! I have been using skewers about a year or so and it's great! I leave mine in the pot all the time, so they do need to be replaced occasionally, but they're cheap and ever so helpful! I think my orchids are much happier now - less over and under - watering!

barkingsquirrell · #9 05-07-2010, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WhiteRabbit

hehe I can't take credit - I read here! I have been using skewers about a year or so and it's great! I leave mine in the pot all the time, so they do need to be replaced occasionally, but they're cheap and ever so helpful! I think my orchids are much happier now - less over and under - watering!

Well thanks then for re-posting the idea! They are cheap and handy since I have a unopened package of them in my kitchen already.