help me save my phal

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Btw, I got a few orchids that are related to Phals and Vandas in my reptile tanks because of near complete root loss (a few of them only have 1 root left). They're recovering fairly quickly (for Vandaeceous orchids of course). The humidity is very high in these tanks.

[invar]

Hello again all, thank you so much for all the advice. I will definitely stop by somewhere and get some brown listerine to hopefully help with the mold/rot problem.

King, I unfortunately don't have a reptile tank or anything to better control the humidity.... but what you said about humidity control makes sense. Perhaps the bag is making things a little too damp and isn't really necessary now since I have at least one fairly healthy looking root?

I haven't fertilized the phal one bit since the whole root rot ordeal. Is it possible that the little fella is also starving? I'm farily ceertain it has plenty of moisture/water.

I'm going to attempt to keep a closer eye on the mold/fuzz problem, cleaning/disinfecting whenever necessary, and perhaps spritzing only the root with a very diluted fertilizer/water solution.

Based on the pictures, do you think it would be safe for me to completely remove the plant from over water and just keep it suspended in the air? And spray the root ONLY a few times daily? Or will the leaves just dry out?

Maybe I should bag the leaves but not the stump/root area?

Again, I'm appreciative of any and all assistance! Thanks.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by invar

King, I unfortunately don't have a reptile tank or anything to better control the humidity.... but what you said about humidity control makes sense. Perhaps the bag is making things a little too damp and isn't really necessary now since I have at least one fairly healthy looking root?

The bag provides very poor air circulation. It doesn't allow you to have a good amount of control over the humidity. Since the bag is small, there are plenty of places where the leaves and roots can come into contact with an area of the bag that is too damp, and because the water doesn't have a lot of places to go, they essentially behave like tiny pools of stagnant water, thus causing suffocation and further rotting.

Originally Posted by invar

I haven't fertilized the phal one bit since the whole root rot ordeal. Is it possible that the little fella is also starving? I'm farily ceertain it has plenty of moisture/water.

I don't recommend fertilizing them just yet, you could run into more problems than good. If you over fertilize, you essentially cause more root damage. Stick with water for now. I recommend waiting to fertilize until there are more than 3 good roots that are at least 3" long.

Originally Posted by invar

I'm going to attempt to keep a closer eye on the mold/fuzz problem, cleaning/disinfecting whenever necessary, and perhaps spritzing only the root with a very diluted fertilizer/water solution.

Spritzing the roots is fine. Like I said prior, forego the fertilizer for now.

Originally Posted by invar

Based on the pictures, do you think it would be safe for me to completely remove the plant from over water and just keep it suspended in the air? And spray the root ONLY a few times daily? Or will the leaves just dry out?

I honestly don't think keeping the plant in a small bucket with water underneath will help out significantly enough to induce the plant's recovery process.

Unless you're home a good portion of the day for several days a week, I don't think it is efficient to spray the roots several times a day.

Like I said, the easiest method and most carefree method is a tank. I can walk away anytime I want to and do whatever I need to do (hang out with friends and family, watch movies, etc) as long as I give the plants a good spray down at least once a day.

The tank doesn't have to be spectacular, or expensive. A cheap $20 - $30 reptile tank at PetSmart or Petco is good enough. If you got enough light coming through a window, you can skip buying lights for the tank for the time being.

Originally Posted by invar

Maybe I should bag the leaves but not the stump/root area?

I don't recommend this practice, it could potentially cause far more problems than it's worth.



I guess the alternative to a tank is a very large fishbowl or something. Put the Phal on a mount and fill the bottom with potting soil.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Pics of my recovering orchid that I had to stick in a very humid reptile tank:

[JerseyGirlBecky]

Lots of good advise. I guess we all try different things. I think it is staying too wet. I had two that were just about gone with no roots at all. I just put them in bark and staked them all around with little bamboo sticks and misted the plant and roots and top of the bark about three times a day. I put them in a northeast window and left them alone. They were so bad that I was ready to throw them out. However they put out new roots and some of the roots have gone down into the bark. Also both are getting a new leaf. The old leaves are all wrinkled and that is not going to change. but I think they are going to make it. At least yours has one root, mine had none.

[silken]

I also potted one that was nearly dead with next to no roots. I did pretty much what JerseyGirlBecky did. I misted the leaves several times everyday and the surface of bark. Of course you don't want to get water in the crown, but I am sure misting the leaves helped it stay alive. It made it and is growing new leaf and roots to the point where I can say it WILL survive.

I'm editing this to say that because you are battling rot, until you are sure that is done with, you likely don't want to pot it or you won't be able to clean and monitor the area.

	Mistking Looking for a misting system? Look no further. Automated misting systems from MistKing are used by multitude of plant enthusiasts and are perfect for Orchids. Systems feature run dry pumps, ZipDrip valve, adjustable black nozzles, per second control! Automatically mist one growing shelf or a greenhouse full of Orchids. See MistKing testimonials

[invar]

Hello all, and thank you for the wonderful replies! I did read each and every single post, but I won't be responding to each one individually, rather I'll just lump my reply together, so please don't take offense for that.

Firstly, money's a bit tight, so I don't think going out and getting a fishbowl even for $20 is an option for me. I'm going to have to make do with what I already have. I don't want the phal to die, but if I have to spend $20+ to save it, I might as well get a new phal and make sure it's taken care of properly to begin with. I hope you guys can understand that, especially King. A tank would be nice, but I really can't justify it. As it stands, my GF wants to hit me over the head for spending so much time and money (orchid mix, root hormone, fertilizer) already.

I took it out yesterday and again, trimmed away some more tiny bits that appeared rotty. I was very aggressive (even moreso than last time) and dug into the hard barky part of the base. I have no experience with phals ,but a significant portion of the bark appeared very dark colored. I fear that this might indicate that the root rot was very bad initially and very deep? I have attached a picture of what it looked like on April 5th after I had bagged it for a few weeks and the blacked stump was still there. Looks bad huh?

After trimming a huge part of the barky part of the base, I submerged it into hydrogen peroxide again. I haven't had a chance to go get brown listerine yet. I really let it sit in there for a loooooooooooooong time because quite frankly, the fizzing NEVER stopped. It slowed, but never came to a stop, even after an entire hour!

I again removed it, and applied cinnamon to the exposed fleshy parts, making sure to keep the root clean.

And... that's where I am today. Again, the picture that I attached is back from April. I do not have a picture of the exposed barky base to show how far the dark/black extended inside.... but I'm assuming the the barky section should NOT be black/brown? Lots of fizzing came from there.

[silken]

There shouldn't really be any black or brown on a Phal. The stem and base can be dark purple with pigment in some phals, but you will know the difference. and some of the surface roots take on some brown colouring rather than white or green, but again, doesn't look like rot.

You could use anything in the house instead of a fish tank. Look around your kitchen. What about a large almost clear Zip Lock storage container or the dome off of a cake server, or a large clear punch or salad bowl. They would all work like a fish tank. I bought a tray and clear plastic domed cover from Lee valley Tools (maybe only Canadian) and it is a seedling starter, but works great for a first aid container for orchids. At this time of the year something similar shouldn't be hard to find. They only cost a few bucks. However most I had seen till this one don't have very high profile covers. This one is about 6 inches and has openings at the top that can be closed.

I'm sure you will find something to use and I see root nubs in that photo! Sometimes its just the point of it to get something to survive so I understand!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Like silken said, large tupperware or large salad bowls?

Medium to large sized clear plastic buckets or Rubbermaid type bins?

I forgot about those, that's why I didn't think to mention them before. It really doesn't matter, as long as the container is not a bag and/or not too small.

All you really need is super high humidity and a good amount of space to put the Phal in so it has room to breathe.

If you've got a job, a decent amount of friends and family, and a girlfriend, forget about babysitting your orchid all day long. It ain't happenin' (it's not realistic either). You gotta be able to take care of your orchid business and get on with things in life. That's why I recommended a big container.


Your orchid's still got hope, you don't have to give up on it yet.

[scy]

Although I have not had an issue with rot, I do this for any orchids with few / none viable roots.

I use cheap tubberware from the dollar store or left over take out containers and just punch a hole or two to avoid mold issues. I open it up every day for a few minutes to let it air out. Then I use a paper towel and moisten (not drench) it with diluted rooting hormone (as recommended on bottle). I wrap this around the the area below the lowest leaf and put it in an area with low light. Good luck!