New to Orchids - Orchid Board

evoapril · #1 07-28-2007, 03:39 PM

I have two orchids that I need advice on. Keep in mind that Im fairly new to orchids.

First off this one was purchased last week at my local grocery store. The plastic pot it came in, had a plastic wrapper around the bottom, and I thought the plant looked very healthy so I brought it home. About 5 hours later at night, I went to the spot in my kitchen where I had put it and noticed about 5-6 unopened blooms from the top just fell off. This plant was transported very carefully from where I purchased it. So then I descided to take the wrapper off because the potting media felt realllllllly moist... I take the plastic wrapper off, and theres a large amount of water just sitting there. I put a bunch of paper towels underneath the pot to soak up as much water as possible. I assume the standing water is why my plant's unopened flowers fell off. As you can see in the pictures, the blooms that already opened are still doing fine with no signs of falling off anytime soon. Also, the plant had a tag on it that said Dendrobium orchid on it so I was wondering if anyone had any clue what exact species this is?

Next off is a Orchid I got at a local garden store. The tag on it said Alcra Pacific Nova "Butter Buds."
This was my first orchid ever. Its warm and sunny and a little humid I live in costal San Diego, CA. So its cloudy/hot mix in the summer sometimes. Seems sorta tropical but more dry I guess. I descided to put this flowering Alcra out on my front patio in the mid day sun. I thought it was happy, but a hour later I looked and leaves were totally crispy light brown color. It only happened to two leaves. The other leaves got a weird spotty dark brown look to them. Pretty sure this was from the sun and not some kinda bug attack. Should I just let it be? Or do I need to cut the spotted leaves off? I cut the totally crispy leaves off at the bottoms of the leaves. Also the bulb section? It looks kinda wrinkly and Im not sure if that is how its supposed to look? It also looks like it needs to be repotted, but when I went to buy a pot and the media, the guy at the store told me if I did it the plant has a chance it may not bloom for years. So i just got the ceramic pot to keep it standing up straight because the plastic pot just fell over. Seems like it needs repotting. All the roots you can see seem dead I dont know if they should be trimmed or if I need to split the plants?

Here is the pic of it flowering just before the flowers fell off.

Here are some pictures of its leaves. Not sure if I should cut them or let them be.

Heres another picture of the entire plant after I cut the dead spike off. I cut it as low as I could get in between the leafs

Anyone have any more info on this type of orchid? Im not sure where to keep them yet, but I know i want to learn them indoors before I attempt to do it outdoors...

evoapril · #2 07-30-2007, 12:21 PM

bump,

can anyone help me with these 2 plants

shakkai · #3 07-30-2007, 12:44 PM

Maybe one of the moderators can move these posts to the Beginner's Discussion area or other appropriate place where more people will see this and be able to respond....

I can't offer any advice on the Dendrobium, I don't have any experience with them...

But, the Alcra is short for Aliceara (which is a combination of Brassia, Miltonia and Oncidium breeding). This plant is a cross between Brsdm. Shooting Star x Milt. clowesii. (Brsdm = Brassidium, which is a cross between a Brassia and an Oncidium)

All have relatively the same culture, and all seem to have fairly 'tender' leaves.... they can get spots for lots of reasons. I used to mist mine, and that gave them black spots. I think you are correct that this damage is likely to be from too direct sunlight - they like quite bright light, but not direct sun.

If it were my plant, I wouldn't worry about cutting the affected foliage off.

The pseudobulbs look like they should be more plump - check the roots. On mine, new growth puts out new roots, and the older bulbs have their own roots. If there was too little or too much water, you might find that the roots on the older pseudobulbs have died off. Though given what the root mass looks like, it is hard to imagine that it could have been over-watered unless it was literally standing in water.

I would re-pot this in a larger pot, I wouldn't split it. Given it is putting out a new growth now, it seems like an ideal time to do it. Take it out of the pot - which may be difficult. (It would probably help to soak the pot in water for 10-15 minutes to make the roots more pliable before trying to take it out...) Check that the roots are still firm and remove any that aren't.

Make sure that the potting medium you use to repot is 'chunky' enough to allow good drainage and good air circulation around the roots.

There should be some good information here on repotting if you search.

cb977 · #4 07-30-2007, 01:58 PM

Hi April...welcome to Orchidboard

Reagrding the Dendrobium...It is a hybrid, rather than a "species". The genus is Dendrobium

and with so many hybrids out there, it's nearly impossible to tell which one it might be. Whatever it is, it sure is pretty

If it was sitting in water as you described, I'd get it repotted. There is lots and lots of info on repotting here on OB, do a search for repotting and read through the threads that come up...you'll learn a lot!

As for the Butter Buds, the spots are most likely from water damage that occurs when these very thin leaved plants are misted. Other than that, I think it looks okay...but I have this plant and haven't succeeded in getting it to bloom so I may not be the person to be offering advice on this one

shakkai · #5 07-30-2007, 02:15 PM

Thanks for moving the posts, Sue!

PS. Very good photos showing what you are talking about, BTW, Evoapril!!

quiltergal · #6 07-30-2007, 03:34 PM

Hi Evo, I would not put the Butter Buds outside. It is a thin leafed member of the Oncidium alliance and does not like direct sun. It will burn to a crisp....ask me how I know!

It also looks like it could use some more water. The Pbulbs shouldn't be that shriveled. During the warm summer months Onc. really suck up the water.

Re the dendro. Dropping buds is a pretty standard response by dendros to a change in environment. They don't like being repotted and they just don't like change in general. Most will sulk for awhile, but in my experience most get over it and go on to do well.

Ross · #7 07-31-2007, 07:46 PM

Evo, you don't say where you are located and how you grow your plants. Let me guess (if I am wrong then shoot me

) The shrviled pseudobulbs are not an issue necessarily. They may point to lack of moisture, but I would guess too much moisture. If this plant were mine I would do several things. First, I would repot it to the next size pot with large bark mix for open air spaces. It just looks too crowded to me. And I would get it out of the glazed pot (I don't think these things help anything other than sales.)

Second, I would water with a mix of KLN (which is a root-enhancing formula from Dyna Grow). Actually I would soak the bark first in this mix then flow it liberally through the pot after I watered it.

The spots are most likely from misting the leaves. Oncidium-class orchids don't like that!

Then I would wait maybe a full week or maybe two weeks till I water again to see if new roots appeared.

This plant looks great to me. I don't see any real issues at all especially with the beautiful yellow blossoms!

I have no clue on the Dendrobium - they aren't my thing

Charles · #8 07-31-2007, 08:27 PM

Hey. I agree with all above.
Glazed pots stink.