It sat in water!!!! Help!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by StefH

I went looking for a root stimulator with fungicide. All I could find at the store was a product called "Wilson Liquid Root Stimulator With Fungicide".

Don't have experience or know anything about this product. Can't say anything worthwhile. Perhaps you can type out what is on the label...

There are people on the OB who can give insight on the matter.

Originally Posted by StefH

Directions said cut root, dip root in gel, then re-plant it. So I did that. Does anyone know if I can mix the gel stimulator with water next time I water my phal? It doesn't seem to say anything about mixing/diluting with water and watering with the stimulator...??

I don't recommend cutting living roots, it may cause more root die off, and will almost definitely make the flowers fall off.

Another thing is, if you're gonna cut anything off of an orchid that is still alive, it is highly recommended that the cutters,scissors, or blade(s) be sterile. There is an extremely high probability that infections can occur from the sites of where the cuts were done. Infections can be: bacterial, fungal, protozoan, or viral. Particularly devastating are viral infections, in which there is currently no known cure for (if the plant contracts a viral infection, it must be destroyed).

Originally Posted by StefH

I also had a hard time finding a good bark mix for orchids. What I ended up buying was a mix made by Miracle Grow....their orchid mix. It wasn't a straight bark mix...but it was all they had...and I figure Miracle Grow usually know what they're talking about...?????? :S Has anyone had any success with this mix?

If this mix has peat moss in it and has the consistency of top soil - then no, it is no good.

A plant's roots can breathe, and Phals are no exception to this. If you've seen pictures of them growing in the wild, you'll see that they usually grow on trees, usually with their roots growing fully exposed to the air, in a very humid and fairly consistently moist habitat. Too fine of a mix = suffocation from not enough air circulation to the roots, and drowning from the potting media retaining too much water.

Originally Posted by StefH

I also bought my orchid a new pot. I will not use the decorative pot that it came with...because it has no drainage. I replanted it in the flimsy plastic pot that it was in - it has great drainage - and I placed that plastic pot into another nice new pot that has good drainage as well! So now my orchid will be able to breathe well and drain well!

An inappropriate potting mix will negate this effect. Everything must be in accordance.

Originally Posted by StefH

I only lost one flower through all of this...yesterday one decided to start dying off, so I clipped it.

Again...

Were the cutters sterilized?

Originally Posted by StefH

I'll keep you posted as to whether or not I lose my flowers/spikes. I really really hope they stay happy! Say happy little orchid prayers for me!!!

As I've stated before...

Flowers are of minor importance to me in comparison to the health of the plant itself in a situation like yours. However, it is nice to have the flowers stick around if they can.

"Happy little orchid prayers" that it will pull through.

[StefH]

Yes, "King" if you read the beginning of my last post, it did say that I sterilized my scissors.

[Leafmite]

Hi!
Sounds as if you are already very competent. I was very glad to read that there are good roots. The orchid will do fine and recover quickly, don't worry, once you get the right medium. The conditions in which Miracle grow orchid mix works for most orchids mystifies me. If you can't find a better bark or bark mix, phals will grow nicely in other things such as lava rock, clay pellets (for hydroponics) and even mounted. The idea is to give those roots air while providing some moisture retention and humidity. Because of my conditions, I grow every orchid in lava rock (the vanilla just has some other things added to the mix, including the Miracle grow bark mix). I hope that you enjoy your orchid and hope you won't get too addicted to these lovely plants.
Good Luck!
Leafmite

[StefH]

I managed to find some Schultz's potting mix for orchids today. I read on another orchid board that one woman mixes the Miracle-Gro with the Schultz's and gets really good results. Actually, she calls it "Orchid Crack". So, I'm thinking of doing the same.

Now I'm a little worried about replanting so soon after replanting. I replanted into the straight Miracle-Gro yesterday...how long should I wait before replanting into the more appropriate medium?

I don't want to shock it too badly. It's made it 24 hours since the first replant and the flowers are still looking happy!!! So far it doesn't look like I'm going to lose them!!

[scy]

It's already shocked, but it's better to repot it asap into a better medium than to wait any longer. You risk damaging the roots if you wait.

[StefH]

Ok, thanks! I'll do it in the morning!

[scy]

np. Keep us updated on how it's doing! *sending out happy little orchid prayers*

[StefH]

Ok,

So I re-re-potted this morning!

I made a mix 3 parts Schultz's Orchid Mix and one part Miracle-Gro Orchid Mix.

Then I sat the whole thing in some water to let it absorb some water. Then I let it drain back out!

This afternoon, I noticed that two of my blooms are wilting. Not sure if they're just shocked and they'll come back, or if they're dying.

And then I started thinking, "Are they dying because they're shocked or are they dying because they're old?" Or maybe a combination of both? They happen to be the blooms lowest on the spike.

So, I'll keep you updated over the next few days. I'm just going to leave her alone now and watch. Maybe sing to her. Tell her she's pretty. Smile slyly in her direction....

[StefH]

48 hours after repotting for the second time, and she's looking pretty good (I've decided she's a she...only a female could be so beautiful but so troublesome...I can say that....I'm a "she"). She lost 2 flowers, but the rest look happy. My buds are looking good and so are my spikes.

[StefH]

Ok, so the bad news is that I've lost all but about 4 of my flowers....but the ones that died off are ones closer to the bottom of the flower spike, not at the top, so I'm wondering if they had just reached the end of their life??? Not sure.

The good news is that my spikes have continued to grow, and so have the two buds that were on there when I clipped all the roots.

It looks like by the end of the day, and new bloom will open, and in about a week, I'll have another one!

It's draining well in its new pot and it seems happy! I am quite please with how it turned out!!