Help my mini-phal survive (bad roots)

[Nameless]

Hi everybody, I found this perfect forum and I have a question right away.

I have bought a mini phal (one month ago?). It was potted in moss which was completely soaked (the phal had some rotten roots) so I decided to repot it right away. I cut off the rotten roots and potted it into pieces of bark with a little bit of coal and with styrofoam on the bottom.

But the mini phal doesn't seem to like this either. The roots are shrivelled even after watering (they are green but still shrunken). So I thought that the bark was too airy (that the bark pieces were too big). But then I noticed that one root (which hangs almost completely in the air) is rotten with this orange fungus or mold or sth. on it. Also the bark dries out very quickly on the top and stays really wet on the bottom.

Obviously I had chosen the wrong media to pot the mini phal in. So I guess it will be necessary to repot it again and cut off the rotten root. But I have really no idea what potting media should I use. My big phals are doing well in these bark pieces but it's obviosly not the right media for the mini phals. I will really appreciate any ideas because I don't think my phal will survive like this.

Many thanks.

[butterfly79]

I'm pretty new to this but i'll give it a try.

Is the mix packed tightly in the pot, it looks like it to me. ?

Does the water run clearly through the pot?

Did you use bark that is intended for orchid use?

How often are you watering?

From what I have learned potting mix packed too tightly can cause water to get trapped in the pot, then the phals roots are swimming in the water. This can cause rot. You want the mix to be loose enough that the roots are still getting air.

Hopefully someone with more experience will chime in.

[Nameless]

The bark is packed quite tightly (as tight as I could do in the mini pot) - but since the bark is quite large for the small roots of the mini phal, it's not as tight as it would be if used on normal phal.

Water does run clearly through.

Yes, the bark is intended for orchids.

I water once a week plus I mist the top of the pot every day or so (since the top dries out quickly but the bottom stays wet).

The phal is definitely not ever standing in water (was very soaked when I bought it though).

//I hope I'm not making many mistakes. If I do, feel free to say that some sentence does not make sense and I will correct it somehow.//

[Call_Me_Bob]

how often do you water?

[Nameless]

I water once a week plus I mist the top every day or so (since the top dries out quickly but the bottom stays wet... I do this with the big phals as well - also to get the water on aerial roots).

I really don't know if the phal has too little water (schrivelled roots) or too much (orange mold). The big phals never did anything like this to me.

[RosieC]

What your are doing sounds OK and I don't think the bark is wrong.

You say you water once a week, but does it dry fully in that time? Really you want to let the bark look dry all the way down and the roots start turning silvery before you water again. Don't water on a set schedule, but when the plant needs it, for many people that IS once a week bit it may not be in your case.

I have found some small pots don't have enough drainage, I notice you have added some holes in the side, but how much drainage is in the bottom. The holes in the bottom don't just affect draining of the water, but also affect the speed at which the medium lower down dries out. If there are not enough holes in the bottom then it may dry too slowly.

I also notice that down in the bottom there is some sort of white material. Sometimes it is useful to pack out the bottom BUT it may actually block the air flow at the bottom, again causing the medium to dry too slowly down there.

Finally I don't bother misting the top even if it dries faster at the top, if you mist heavily enough to make any difference that water will seep down to the lower levels and just keep those wet longer.

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[Nameless]

I think it definitely won't hurt to make bigger holes in the bottom of the pot (it is a yoghurt pot actually - I didn't find such small transparent pots for flowers ) and some more to the sides near the bottom. And I will pull out the white styrofoam on the bottom, it probably really prevents the bottom to dry out.

But I am still confused whether the phal gets too much (orange mold) or too little (shrivelled roots) water.

[Call_Me_Bob]

Seems like to much. The roots are Shriveling from rot

[RosieC]

I agree, it gives me the impression it it is getting too much and/or not drying quick enough.

[Nameless]

Ok, I will make bigger holes in the pot, remove the styrofoam, cut off the bad root, keep the phal more dry and see what happens.

When should I start fertilizing (I've never fertilized this phal yet)? Should I wait until the phal gets better?