Phalaenopsis with root rot, in need of re-potting lots of Q's

[Im Just Saying]

I wasn't sure where to post this as I have several questions and am in need of help.

I finally purchased my first orchid from a supermarket 2 days ago. I've hesitated buying one for a couple of years now out of fear that I would kill it. However it seems that my Phalaenopsis is in trouble, the day I bought it two yellowed leaves fell off while I was in line to purchase it. The third bottom most leaf was slightly yellow at the base and one of the unopened buds was wilted and the stem it was attached to looked dried up but not thinking anything of it I bought it anyhow. When I got it home the top layers of the bark were soaked and the water in the bottom of the decorative vase had filled up the overfill space and was touching the bottom of the clear pot. I pored it out, and haven't watered since then.

Overnight the third leaf started turning from yellow to brown with the color spreading out from the base and the leaf started curling under itself. Yesterday I started inspecting the roots more closely and can see that it appears to have root rot. Since then another flower bud has started to droop as well as one of the healthier leaves on top. To add to that, the leaf that is drooping looks like it has a couple of small brown spots forming near the base. I've attached photos for reference.

So it seems from what I read on here I should re-pot it despite the fact its blooming and so follows my questions.

Currently the pot it is in slides into a vase that is 5" in diameter, do I need to get a larger pot? I have no idea how to tell.

Second it looks like the current media is bark. My phal will be kept in a large room that is mostly south facing and is 1/2 covered with windows without blinds (its in a high-rise office) where the temperature is regulated. I'm not sure if I should stick with bark or if I should go with a bark-moss mixture, or if it's something I can purchase at my local hardware store.

I've read about treating the items that are cut off with cinnamon, is this just the kind that is in a shaker that can be bought at a grocery store? Is this something I need to apply to the roots that are trimmed off?

I have to admit I'm nervous about hurting the plant but I don't want it to die. Thanks for any help offered.

[tucker85]

I think your plant, the roots and the medium all look pretty good. I don’t think you need to repot until after the flowers drop off. To water it, take the plastic pot only, put it in the sink and run water through it to get the medium completely wet. Then let it dry out completely before watering again. If the roots in the pot are green and the medium looks moist then it doesn’t need watering. When they turn white and the medium looks dry, you can water thoroughly again. But don’t let it sit bone dry for long. Don’t worry about the bottom leaf turning yellow. Bottom leaves occasionally fall off and being in a new environment makes it more likely. You have a pretty phalaenopsis there.

[Val]

Yes, you can use regular cinnamon, bought from the grocery store.
Don't use cinnamon on the roots. It's a desiccant, i.e. it sucks water from tissues. Useful for "sealing" cuts in stems or leaves, but dangerous for roots.

My 2 cents re your Phal: put away the vase for a while, so the bottom roots get a chance to breathe better.

Anyway, nice and healthy plant. Nothing to worry about.

[lily99]

Welcome to Orchidboard. I agree with the other posters that the roots look healthy. I like clear pots for phals so I can keep an eye on the roots. They like light from an east facing window or a south window shaded with a sheer curtain.

[Im Just Saying]

Okay so I've taken it out of the decorative container, watered and left it in the clear pot sitting out over night. After taking a look at the roots again it looks like the roots that appear "mushy" and dark green are on either side of where the bamboo supports were inserted to support the spikes, but the same root is a healthy green on both sides of where the discoloration occurs. On the sides of the pot where there are no bamboo supports all of the roots look healthy. Should I just watch and try to wait for the bloom to finish before repotting then? When I brought it home there was a rotten root protruding from the bottom of the pot that was hanging on only by the (pardon the lack of proper terminology) green string in the middle. This was only trimmed off at the bottom of the plant, so I'm not sure how much of the actual root was rotted.

Also should I cut off the secondary leaf that has the large brown sunken in spot? It hasn't really spread much so I'm no longer worried that it is Erwinia as I think I would have seen much more damage occur in the few days I've had it. Sorry for all the questions it seems like I'm learning quite a bit from reading on the forum but I still feel clueless at times.

[NatalieS]

Originally Posted by Im Just Saying

Okay so I've taken it out of the decorative container, watered and left it in the clear pot sitting out over night. After taking a look at the roots again it looks like the roots that appear "mushy" and dark green are on either side of where the bamboo supports were inserted to support the spikes, but the same root is a healthy green on both sides of where the discoloration occurs. On the sides of the pot where there are no bamboo supports all of the roots look healthy.

I bought a mini phal a few months ago where the bamboo stake had actually skewered a small section of the roots. At first they looked healthy but a few days later the section around the stake started to turn dark and mushy. This sounds similar to what you are seeing so my advice would be to remove the stake, take the plant out of the pot and cut away the dark, mushy sections of root. Use a sterilised blade or pair of scissors (I dip everything I'm working with in methylated spirits but you can also run a lighter over the blades).

I also put some cinnamon in boiling water with a tiny bit of soap, left the mixture to cool until it was tepid, put the plant back in the pot, and then immersed the pot and the plant in the mixture for 5-10 minutes. If you want to be extra careful, use fresh bark and sterilise the pot before putting the plant back in. I couldn't do this because the mini was in moss and I had neither moss, nor a fine enough bark, to repot into.

I would do this now. When I first spotted the dark, mushy patches around the stake on my mini I left it for a few days to see what would happen and a fungus started to grow, so don't hesitate.

Don't worry about the blooms either. Getting rid of the bad roots might set it back a bit, but when it recovers it will bloom again. My plant was also in bloom and thankfully the surgery didn't affect it - it's still blooming over a month later and working on two new spikes. That's just my !

If you need to put the stakes back in, sterilise them and be very careful when pushing them back into the mix. I can't advise on the leaves - I'll leave (haha) that to someone else!

[Im Just Saying]

Okay so I figured I would post an update as I saw that this thread has been referenced in "The Phal abuse ends here thread".

I did do as a NatalieS suggested and checked out my phals root system. It turns out that I did have some root rot as well as some mildew looking substance on the bamboo supports. I did end up removing 25-30% of the root system due to rot, and cut off the wilted brown leaf as well. I added cinnamon to the area exposed where the leaf was removed, and soaked the freshly cut roots in the cinnamon water mixture (which I found the exact measurements for in another thread using the search bar). I sterilized the pot and bamboo skewers, and re-potted her in fresh mix in the same pot.

It's been two weeks now and sadly I did lose most of her blooms (I think I counted 35 when I bought her) I'm down to 8 now, but my phal appears to be on the mend and is no longer declining. Ultimately I'm glad that I re-potted as I would have hated to lose her to root rot, and I'm looking forward to this fall where I'm sure she will make a huge comeback.

[LadyGT]

Originally Posted by Im Just Saying

However it seems that my Phalaenopsis is in trouble, the day I bought it two yellowed leaves fell off while I was in line to purchase it. The third bottom most leaf was slightly yellow at the base and one of the unopened buds was wilted and the stem it was attached to looked dried up but not thinking anything of it I bought it anyhow.

Overnight the third leaf started turning from yellow to brown with the color spreading out from the base and the leaf started curling under itself. Yesterday I started inspecting the roots more closely and can see that it appears to have root rot. Since then another flower bud has started to droop as well as one of the healthier leaves on top. To add to that, the leaf that is drooping looks like it has a couple of small brown spots forming near the base. I've attached photos for reference.

My first question is, if you were so afraid of purchasing an orchid due to the possibility of killing it, why did you purchase this particular plant in the first place? It had yellowing leaves and two fell off while in line to purchase. Clear signs of poor health.

Second question, was it heavily discounted that you thought it was worth the risk of trying to revive it?

I am just wondering what you were thinking at the time of purchase. Don't feel bad. I have a dining room table covered with plants that I rescued off the Lowes clearance rack in hopes that I can bring them back to life. I was too cheap to pay full price and figured to buy off the clearance rack would be the way to go in learning how to care for them. One is now blooming and two have started growing spikes. In hindsight, it would have been better to purchase healthy ones from the grocery store for $9.99 at Kroger on sale vs. purchasing 10-15 at $7.99 or less. I lost quite a few over the past year but the learning experience is invaluable. My confidence has grown quite a bit since last March. lol.

[Im Just Saying]

Ah funny you should ask, I actually purchased it due to a series of events. I would like to preface by saying I have wanted to own an orchid for probably about 3 years now. However out of fear of killing it and the still prevalant stereotype that they are difficult to grow and keep alive I never purchased one. With that being said about 5 months ago I was furloughed with the company that I work for, during the 3 months out of work my office moved into another office in the same building. In my previous work space I was in a bullpen type area surrounded by offices with doors and only one area with windows. Unless you were in an office it wasn't a condusive area to plant life with the exception of lucky "bamboo".

When I went back to work my new area was a large open office area where I am surrounded by windows and light. As a sort of congratulations for going back to work I decided to take the dive into trying my hand at an orchid and purchased my first which was discounted although not heavily. At the time I will admit that I knew the general tolerances for phals but I did not know to check the roots to see how healthy the plant really is when picking one out. All that aside the two leaves that fell off looked different from the one I ended up cutting off, they just looked yellow/brown and were secondary leaves and I don't recall them being wilted. From what I have read on here that happens from time to time with older leaves on phals so it's not necessarily a sign of bad health. Overall the roots looked fairly healthy at first glance it was about a week later that I really checked them out. Ultimately I believe what lead to the root rot was that the stakes supporting the flower spikes pierced the root system, and that they were allowed to sit in whatever water was at the bottom of the decorative pot.

After reading on here and getting advice I feel much more confidant about these plants. I'm actually hoping to attend the orchid show that is currently going on at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens and perhaps getting another orchid now that I know much more about what to look for and what care is involved with the various types.

[LadyGT]

Good for you. You did some research before purchasing. lol. A few years ago, I puchased one from Lowe's for $20 and returned it out of fear of killing it. Last year, my 18 y/o daughter saw some orchids on the clearance rack and wanted to give it a shot. I bought one at the same time and now have about 18 rescues in my dining room. The bad thing about owning orchids is that they are so slow in growing. I have to say it has been quite an learning experience taking care of them. Seeing some finally growing a spike is making it all worthwhile. At this point, I am comparing it to eating a box of chocolate, you never know what you will get.