Quote:
Originally Posted by Xantera
My main question is about the pot. As you can see in the pictures it's quite big and the roots are beginning to come out of the bottom, common sense is telling me to change the pot but another friend of mine said that i should leave it. Is this correct? or will it end up strangeling it's self? also a clear plastic pot is what i have been reading is the best, is there a reason behind this?
Another question is i have noticed one of the leaves has a small hole in it. should i be concerned? leave it or cut the leaf off? Sinse i have had it i have watered it once a week leaving it to drain and dry off for about 30mins before putting it back. it's kept in a room full of light but no direct sunlight and it seem's to be thriving! the leaves are now firming up and you can barely see wrinkles now. Im guessing i wont see any flowers for a long while (any hints on just how long that will be would be great) from it but so far everything seems good :-D
Thanks and looking forward to replys
Louise
|
Hi Louise and welcome to the OB
I've been growing orchids for over 10 years but only been growing Phals since Dec 09. I've learned an awful lot on this board and my Phals are thriving.
Firstly have you taken the Phal out of the pot at all? Although it looks like you have heaps of healthy green roots there may be some rotten roots in the centre. I would remove it from the pot and check the roots. Any dead, hollow or mushy ones should be removed with a sterilized blade or scissors. When you have only got healthy roots left give it a gentle wash and you can give it a dust with powdered cinnamon as a disinfectant.
Depending how big the root ball is you can possibly pot it back in to it's orginal pot, after cleaning it. Phals like to be quite closely potted with just about enough room for it's root ball. If there are no dead roots and the root ball is big you can put it into a pot one size up but no bigger. Repot it with fresh bark mix.
Clear plastic pots are best for Phals for a couple of reasons. Firstly you can see the roots without keep on tipping the plant out. You can see when they have gone white or silvery and the plant needs watering. Also Phals roots carry out photosynthesis like leaves do so it is a benefit to the orchid.
As for the mark on the leaf it looks like it's been damaged in the moving or something like that. I would keep an eye on it, if it gets any bigger or changes colour I would cut the leaf off but only the part that is affected. Give it an inch margin into the good part of the leaf.
Just a comment from looking at your pics, I think you have a basal keiki. Phals are monopodial which means they have one growth stem. Sometimes if the crown is damaged they will put out another growth at the base of the plant eg basal keiki. Keiki means baby or little one I believe.
Hope this helps.
Recovering Phalaenopsis
So if this is the case how do i deal with the kelki? leave it to get nurtured by the mother plant and grow them together? or will i need to seperate sooner or later?
Linear Mode
