HELP!! I think My Phal is dying!!

[horsegurl3313]

I have had a Phal for a few months now and it was perfect. It had beautiful flowers, 2 stems and was growing new blooms. Right when I brought it home one leaf turned yellow and fell off. I was worried but it didn't happen again. Suddenly, 2 more leaves dropped off just earlier this month and its flowers started drying and falling. Now the stems are brown and woodsy instead of a dark purpley green that they were before and it has no blooms or leaves. I don't know if there is any hope in saving that one or if there is anything I can do to prevent it from happening again. I am still new at the whole Orchid thing, and though I love them, I know I still have a lot to learn. Please tell me what I did wrong!

Oh! I forgot to mention that the roots have gotten brown and dry as well, but watering doesn't seem to help.

[Lana]

Is there a way for you to post a picture of your plant? It's very hard to give advice when you don't see the actual problem.

[Paul Mc]

Sounds like it may be too far gone for repair, especially if there are no healthy roots and no leaves. But, again, posting a picture would greatly help us to help you assess what might be going on.

[flhiker]

I've had several do the same thing and in most every case I was over watering them. Phals like dry roots and crown. Make sure your pot has plenty of drainage and water no more then twice a week. Phals have proven to me to be very hardy and will rebound if given the right conditions. Of course pictures will take out the guess work.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

A little tip...

Don't look at the flowers 1st when you're selecting for plant health and vigor.

Flowers are a plant's genitalia. You cannot determine the overall health of any kind of organism just based on their genitalia.

You gotta look at their roots 1st. Leaves and stem 2nd. Flowers are last.

When selecting for a plant with a healthy root system, you can't just look at the roots that are dangling in the air or the ones that are pressed against the sides of the pot, you gotta look at the roots in the center as well. 9-times-out-of-10 the area with the most root damage is in the center of the pot.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

A pic does help tremendously.

However, I will hazard a couple well educated guesses...

1. I'll bet it was most likely grown in moss.

2. If it wasn't grown in moss, but in bark, then another guess would be that the pot may be too large for the root mass. When growing Phals, it's best to grow in the smallest pot size that the roots will fit in as much as possible.

3. There's most likely massive amounts of root damage, particularly in the center of the root mass, or another way to put it; there was most likely heavy root damage to the roots in the center of the pot.

There's also the issue of...

1. We don't know what temperatures they're being grown under.

So...

What are the day/night temperatures where you're growing them?

What are the seasonal temperatures like?

The temperature range you should be shooting for is within 60 F - 90 F.

2. What is the humidity?

For Phals 50% - 80% is adequate.

3. How often were you watering?

4. What kind of fertilizer were you using?

N-P-K ratio?

Brand?

Urea free or not?

5. What was the light exposure?

Best verbal description, please (i.e. deep shade, shade, bright shade, moderate indirect light, bright indirect light, very bright indirect light, full sun, etc.)

Lux, lumens, footcandles (if you have a light meter)?

6. What's the air circulation like (not quantifiable - just use best verbal description possible)?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

This is a link to a blog that somebody in Malaysia (Michael Lo) posted of his trip in his local swamp forest. In it, it shows how Phals grow in the wild, please read the blog:

The Kerangas



Here's another blogger from Malaysia ("sarawaklens") who talks about Phalaenopsis in the wild, please also read this blog:

Sarawak Lens: Phalaenopsis Habitat

[horsegurl3313]

Originally Posted by King_of_orchid_growing:)

A pic does help tremendously.

However, I will hazard a couple well educated guesses...

1. I'll bet it was most likely grown in moss.

2. If it wasn't grown in moss, but in bark, then another guess would be that the pot may be too large for the root mass. When growing Phals, it's best to grow in the smallest pot size that the roots will fit in as much as possible.

3. There's most likely massive amounts of root damage, particularly in the center of the root mass, or another way to put it; there was most likely heavy root damage to the roots in the center of the pot.

There's also the issue of...

1. We don't know what temperatures they're being grown under.

So...

What are the day/night temperatures where you're growing them?

What are the seasonal temperatures like?

The temperature range you should be shooting for is within 60 F - 90 F.

2. What is the humidity?

For Phals 50% - 80% is adequate.

3. How often were you watering?

4. What kind of fertilizer were you using?

N-P-K ratio?

Brand?

Urea free or not?

5. What was the light exposure?

Best verbal description, please (i.e. deep shade, shade, bright shade, moderate indirect light, bright indirect light, very bright indirect light, full sun, etc.)

Lux, lumens, footcandles (if you have a light meter)?

6. What's the air circulation like (not quantifiable - just use best verbal description possible)?

ummmm........wow.....okay let me try this....
1. temperature stays around 73 in my house but my room is the coldest in the house so it is probably more around 69 or so, I don't think it ever gets below 60.

2. I honestly have no idea about the humidity, but I live in georgia so it is normally pretty high...although my hair has not been really frizzy so it might be lower than I am thinking...but I have no idea how to tell the humidity...

3.I normally water about 2 times a week. Although I have to say that when the leaves began to fall off I started watering more than normal...

4. I was not using fertilizer. I honestly did not know that I should have been.

5. I think that the light exposure would either be called bright shade or moderate indirect light...either way it is not too extreme either way..

6. There is an air vent above where I keep my Orchid and it normally blows fairly well.

Thank you soo much for all your help! And I am so sorry it it makes it more difficult but I am not able to post pictures.
I am starting to think that I should have come for advice before getting an orchid...either that or just not getting one at all

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by horsegurl3313

1. Temperature stays around 73 F in my house but my room is the coldest in the house so it is probably more around 69 F or so, I don't think it ever gets below 60 F.

It's within range.

During the summers, it's preferred that the temperatures you provide for it are warmer.

They come from tropical Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand, Malaysia, The Phillipines, or Indonesia. Some even naturally occur in Taiwan and parts of China. It might be in your best interest to research these countries' climatic conditions. Things to look for are the average rainfall on a monthly basis. Their relative humidity on a monthly basis. Their average yearly temperature highs, their average yearly temperature lows. Their monthly average temperatures on the high end and the low end. Their rainy seasons. Their dry or drier seasons.

Originally Posted by horsegurl3313

2. I honestly have no idea about the humidity, but I live in Georgia so it is normally pretty high...although my hair has not been really frizzy so it might be lower than I am thinking...but I have no idea how to tell the humidity...

There are meters that measure for humidity called hygrometers. Good investment if you're going to continue on with orchid growing. Some are reasonably priced. Check around.

50% - 80% humidity is within range for Phals.

Originally Posted by horsegurl3313

3. I normally water about 2 times a week. Although I have to say that when the leaves began to fall off I started watering more than normal...

Twice a week is a good benchmark. Eventually you'll learn to figure out whether the plant needs water or not just by looking, then you won't have to use "training wheel knowledge" to get you by.

Originally Posted by horsegurl3313

4. I was not using fertilizer. I honestly did not know that I should have been.

Not knowing is part of starting on a new venture. Screw ups and mishaps happen along the way. It's normal. Mistakes are part of the learning process.

Not fertilizing your orchid will not kill it. It just makes it produce weak flowers or not bloom, that's all.

Shoot for a urea free fertilizer with a N-P-K ratio of roughly 20-20-20 (the N-P-K ratio doesn't have to be exactly what I recommend, if you get close it's fine).

N-P-K = nitrogen - phosphorous - potassium (K is the elemental symbol)

Urea is a form of nitrogen that needs microbes in the soil to break it down to a more usable form of nitrogen that most plants can use right away. Since most of the orchids that are commonly available and are of interest to the majority of hobbyists are epiphytical (epiphyte = surface life - in the case of orchids they live on the surfaces of trees), urea is most of the times useless.

There are three forms of nitrogen to look for in a fertilizer:

1. Ammoniacal Nitrogen
2. Nitrate Nitrogen
3. Urea Nitrogen

Ammoniacal and nitrate nitrogen are the ones that most plants can take up easily.

Originally Posted by horsegurl3313

5. I think that the light exposure would either be called bright shade or moderate indirect light...either way it is not too extreme either way..

Okay. That's fine.

Originally Posted by horsegurl3313

6. There is an air vent above where I keep my Orchid and it normally blows fairly well.

As long as it's not blowing directly onto the orchid it's fine. The air could be dry air which is no good for your Phal.

Originally Posted by horsegurl3313

Thank you soo much for all your help!

It's not a problem. You're welcome!

Originally Posted by horsegurl3313

And I am so sorry it it makes it more difficult but I am not able to post pictures.

It is more difficult, but sometimes it can be done. Other times it's almost impossible. If someone asks you to post a pic, and you can't do it, just say it. People will usually understand and answer the best they can.

Originally Posted by horsegurl3313

I am starting to think that I should have come for advice before getting an orchid...either that or just not getting one at all

A couple people have just recently asked members of the OB what they thought would be good beginner's orchids. Some members have answered. You might be interested in seeing what their opinions are. My input is in there too.

Hopefully one small setback won't discourage you from growing orchids anymore. They're real cool plants.

[Paul Mc]

Oh wow, don't get discouraged if you like the plant. It's actually easier than it sounds, and far easier than many other tropical houseplants. As King said, it takes some time with training wheels on before you get the hang of it. But once you do, the bug will bite and you won't be able to stop at just one, lol... When it comes to orchids, there tends to be a learning curve because they grow very different in nature than most household plants. Patience and confidence is key to successful orchid growing!

A few things I'd like to add.

While fertilizer is very important for long term care, some people don't fertilize. I did not fertilize my phal's for 3 years and they successfully bloomed and grew. That being said, to optimize the blooms and growth fertilizing is recommended.

While humidity is extremely important for long term care, phal's are generally ok with lower humidity. They may not bloom until they get the higher humidity, but they can tolerate it. I personally leave my phal's over a bowl of water (roots and base of the planter not touching the water) and that seems to work just fine. They always rebloom for me.