The Phal abuse ends here.

[dreamynights]

To answer King_of_orchid_growing, I applied cinnamon on the spike that I cut - enough to cover the entire surface of it. I didnt cut the spike all the way cause I thought it would just shrivel up on its own quickly. The spike stayed green for a long time and is still not completely dried yet. Then I tried to dust/dab some cinnamon on ends of the roots that I had cut but it was not a lot since I had difficulty handling it. I was expecting to see some growth on the orchid by now but have not seen any.

Also the red thing does not seem like sand as it is not hard. It seemed more like a tough rubbery texture but did not pop like an egg when I squeezed it. I will not worry about it though!

This was very helpful though. I was thinking about repotting my plant this weekend again to remove any remaining bugs and trims some of the roots. But now I am thinking it will be just fine! I just removed moss near the crown so it will not stay as wet near those areas. Thanks for your replies!

[butterfly_muse]

One thing, don't put cinnamon on roots. It will suck the moisture right on out of them.

[Rowangreen]

Putting a bit of cinamon just on the cut ends is OK.

You need to be strict with your mum: no more watering when it's still damp! You've got a clear pot so make the rule that it doesn't get watered at least until the roots down in the pot have gone silvery (better to go a bit over this than under probably). Water it at the sink so any excess can drain away too.

Don't cut off the dried out roots: the roots have an absorbant outer layer and a core that transports water. If they are green further down then probably the core is still working. It's normal to lose a few roots when changing from one medium to another. Hopefully the plant will soon put out some fresh new roots. It looks pretty healthy overall.

[dreamynights]

Originally Posted by Rowangreen

Putting a bit of cinamon just on the cut ends is OK.

You need to be strict with your mum: no more watering when it's still damp! You've got a clear pot so make the rule that it doesn't get watered at least until the roots down in the pot have gone silvery (better to go a bit over this than under probably). Water it at the sink so any excess can drain away too.

Don't cut off the dried out roots: the roots have an absorbant outer layer and a core that transports water. If they are green further down then probably the core is still working. It's normal to lose a few roots when changing from one medium to another. Hopefully the plant will soon put out some fresh new roots. It looks pretty healthy overall.

Unfortunately, even though my pot is technically clear... I cant really see through it! They arent the "crystal clear" kind so I think thats why its difficult to tell when to water! My mother doesn't water when its still very wet, but when the top looks dry but you can feel a bit of wetness when you push down. It is currently at that state right now and the roots look pretty green with a hint of silver. I think I will wait until the roots look more white than green next time when I water.

My last post I said I didn't see any growth (maybe cause I cant see through the pot either) but on one of the surface roots I can see a little root sprouting off a bigger root. Hooray!

[butterfly_muse]

Originally Posted by dreamynights

Unfortunately, even though my pot is technically clear... I cant really see through it! They arent the "crystal clear" kind so I think thats why its difficult to tell when to water! My mother doesn't water when its still very wet, but when the top looks dry but you can feel a bit of wetness when you push down. It is currently at that state right now and the roots look pretty green with a hint of silver. I think I will wait until the roots look more white than green next time when I water.

My last post I said I didn't see any growth (maybe cause I cant see through the pot either) but on one of the surface roots I can see a little root sprouting off a bigger root. Hooray!

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-t_HJhY8gBn...2Bin%2Bpot.jpg <-- Here is a nice comparison of wet vs dry.

[gingersmommy]

My advise is, if you even suspect mealys or bugs, use an insecticide. After battling mealy bugs for two years trying the organic way (repotting with fresh medium, soap and alcohol treatments, hand picking, etc.), I finally got on this site and used the Bayer Rose and Garden spray on my plants. Before that, I had to cut many a spike after they took over the flowers. I would try to clean the flowers with a q-tip, but the next day, they would come out of no where and be on the flowers. It was very discouraging and I was almost ready to give up. I think I finally have them licked now, but I reapply every couple of weeks to be sure. They are very persistent critters and it takes diligence to get rid of them. I have them on humidity trays and I clean those carefully every couple of weeks, microwave the grates, and then put some Bayer spray in the water for the tray. Buggers.

[Cintirella]

I read somewhere, that one way to rid them is: let the plant dry as much as you can. Seems these bugs like the wetness in the media. I had something like that when I lived in Fla. ( humidity didn't help )- as soon as I moved north ( Illinois ) they were gone. Of course I kept very rigid schedule on the watering. But these bugs will fly in and out of the plant. tiny tiny little bugs.

[Discus]

Originally Posted by Cintirella

I read somewhere, that one way to rid them is: let the plant dry as much as you can. Seems these bugs like the wetness in the media. I had something like that when I lived in Fla. ( humidity didn't help )- as soon as I moved north ( Illinois ) they were gone. Of course I kept very rigid schedule on the watering. But these bugs will fly in and out of the plant. tiny tiny little bugs.

This sounds like fungus gnats to me, rather than mealybugs?

[gingersmommy]

As far as letting the plant dry, I can tell you that doesn't work. I think they get their moisture by sucking it out of the leaves, so they will not be deterred by dry medium, roots. They especially like to feed in the crown or on the new leaves, on the flowers, etc.

[orchid-recruit]

It can be tricky getting to know when to water your plants, so you should try and get on a schedule, like once a week unless you live somewhere very dry. Try to keep the potting medium consistent so there is no confusion about which pots have moss, fine, or medium bark, etc. Only one person should be watering any house plant unless both adhere to the strict schedule. I'd be pissed if I caught my boyfriend watering my orchids.

---------- Post added at 05:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:54 PM ----------

Oh, and I think it is better to error on the side of dry than too wet.