lower leaves yellow

[captkirk33]

Have a phal. that have brought back to life a few months ago, now having problems. lower leaves yellow. live in central Fl. orchids on shady porch, been real hot, 97 +. water 4" pot every 10-14 days. Cant figure out what im doing wrong. maybe high humidity, is allowing plant to absorb moisture? other orchids seem to be fine

[Rosiefuture]

Hi James Tiberius! Welcome!

Have you had a look at the roots to see how they are. Reactions in the leaves and blooms are often from what is going on in the roots. You say it's in a 4inch pot, maybe this is too big? They like to be in a pot just big enough to fit their roots in. You also say you only water every 10-14 days, maybe this isn't enough and your Phal is dehydrated, hence the yellowing leaves. I water my Phals each week with warm water with weak fertilizer added (called weakly/weekly here).

I'm no expert and if you could post a pic it would help us to give you more advice.

Marion

[johnblagg]

It may just be time for them to die off .....is it growing new leaves from the crown?If it is growing new leaves then dont get worried yet old leaves do drop once in a while...but a root check is always good advice.

[jrodpad]

I completely agree with what was already said. One other thing you might check - take a look at the leaves that aren't yet yellow but are closest to the yellow leaves. Smooth, stiff and shiny or limp, ridged and dull? I find that when there's trouble, the lowest green leaves will develop the slightest bit of ridging - you wouldn't even notice unless you were looking for it - and it's an early sign of distress. The good news is it's reversible! I've had ridged leaves plump back up after correcting the problem (usually under watering in my case).

Good luck!

- J

[Izzie]

I agree with John. It's normal for Phals to shed one or a couple leaves every year, as they grow new ones. Let the leaves yellow all the way (the plant is taking nutrients from them), and if they don't fall off naturally, cut them off with a sterilized blade.

Of course check the roots, repot if you haven't already. The state of the roots should tell you if the plant is happy. You want firm green or white ones. If the roots are in trouble and the plant is not able to absorb enough nutrients, it will often take nutrients from older leaves in order to sustain itself.

Check if there is media crowded around the base of the crown- if it's keeping that area too moist, it could be that those leaves are just rotting off. I've had that happen in my earlier growing days, and since then, I keep the length of the crown well clear of any media.

[johnblagg]

Originally Posted by jrodpad

I completely agree with what was already said. One other thing you might check - take a look at the leaves that aren't yet yellow but are closest to the yellow leaves. Smooth, stiff and shiny or limp, ridged and dull? I find that when there's trouble, the lowest green leaves will develop the slightest bit of ridging - you wouldn't even notice unless you were looking for it - and it's an early sign of distress. The good news is it's reversible! I've had ridged leaves plump back up after correcting the problem (usually under watering in my case).

Good luck!

- J

Excellet advise there. I have noticed that as well and as stated if it is more than normal leaf drop from age there will be signs in the green leaves that are still there as well.

[Royal]

Probably just normal leaf senescence, especially if there is new growth.

Marion made a good point too - the warm season really gets Phals growing fast. This is when they would normally get a lot of rain. During summer temps, you don't want them running out of water, and you want to take advantage of those high temps. Of course it the media is still wet at 10 days of 97 degrees, there may be another issue.