Plant yellowing, please help - Orchid Board

Slobo · #1 03-20-2012, 11:28 AM

Hello all,

Totally new to orchid hobby and this is my first post.
Few days ago I bought some plants at Home Depot. One of them has very pale green leaves. Also one of the bottom leaves is completely yellow. The rest of the leaves are beginning to turn yellow as well. It starts from the centre of the plant as you can see from attached photos.
I really don't know what this can be and how to treat the plant to save it.
Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much.

Slobo

glengary54 · #2 03-20-2012, 01:38 PM

Slobo - the yellow leaf on the bottom of the plant is nothing to worry about. It is an old leaf that has served its purpose and will eventually fall off. I don't see any other of the leaves turning yellow, all in all you have a very healthy looking plant. Just to be safe, pull the plant out of the pot to see if the roots are plump and not rotted and mushy.

Paul Mc · #3 03-20-2012, 01:47 PM

Actually, I do see the yellow you are referring to, but agree with Glen about checking the roots. It may be more from miscare than anything else, but mushy or dead roots would tell you otherwise.

Slobo · #4 03-20-2012, 02:17 PM

Thanks Glen and Paul,

I replied earlier to Glens post but for some reason my reply didn't went through.
Anyway, I inspected roots trough the clear plastic pot. Most of the roots are green in colour and some light brownish. some of them have very tiny black spots on the top if that means anything.
The moss is very moist but not wet, wet. The plant is blooming, I don't know if I should pool it from the pot to inspect the roots further.
The bottom yellow leaf is not my biggest concern but ratter I'm afraid if I leave the plant as is to come to the point with no return, if you know what I mean.

Thanks so much for your help.

Slobo

Paul Mc · #5 03-20-2012, 02:24 PM

Yes, it's advisable to search all of the roots. The issue may be hidden in the moss. Take pictures and post of the roots if possible, though what you have described sounds fine to my inexperienced thoughts.

silken · #6 03-20-2012, 02:55 PM

Welcome to OB! Just looking thru the pot won't tell you enough about the roots. There are quite a few posts on here about Phals if you want to do some searching. The Phal Abuse Ends Here is one long thread with many tips on Phal. care.

Most Phals don't mind being inspected and re-potted while in bloom and it's better to inspect the roots now than later when it might be too late. The centre roots could be too wet and in the process of rotting. You could pull it out of the pot and remove a good amount of the moss and see how things are. If it looks not too bad, you could put it back with less moss so the roots can get some air until it's done blooming. Then re-pot in new bark, moss, CHC or whatever you like. In the wild Phals have their roots out in the open and if the moss it too dense and wet, the plant will likely die eventually.

Slobo · #7 03-20-2012, 03:12 PM

Thanks Silken,

I decided to pool the plant from the pot and inspect the roots but being novice I can't make jugement on plant condition.

So I uploaded some additional photos of the root system.
Please let me know what you all think.

Thanks

Slobo

The Mutant · #8 03-20-2012, 03:33 PM

Welcome to the forum Slobo!

Could I ask for a picture of the entire root system? As it is now it's a bit hard to figure out if the Phal have few roots or not. I would remove that mushy looking root immediately and not worry too much about the rest. As long as the roots are firm they are usually good, but don't take my word for it. I'm just a newbie like you. Maybe only a little less of one.

Slobo · #9 03-20-2012, 03:52 PM

Thanks for welcoming me to OB,

Here are two more photos. One with entire root system and one with the one of the roots detailed.

My question is: is the root in the second photo dead or close to that (look at the middle of the photo, the dark brownish root)? Sorry for all this novice questions, but that is the only way I know how to learn.

Slobo

The Mutant · #10 03-20-2012, 04:01 PM

The root system does not seem quite adequate for such a large Phal. This could be one of the reasons of the yellowing of the leaves.

How does the root feel? Mushy? Firm? It might not be alive but I have not clue honestly.

If I were you, I would cut the spike (BAD me), remove all the mushy or dead roots, pot the Phal into some nice bark mix (maybe bark, charcoal, sphagnum, perlite, or why not a pre-mixed compost - whatever is easiest for you) and use some sort of root growth hormone to promote the plant to produce more roots...

OBS!
Before you do any of above, wait until some of the more experienced members have said something! As I've already mentioned, I'm just a newbie myself and my suggestion might be over the top.