I'm back....

[Wynn Dee13]

Yeah quiltergal is right. What you have left is a few dead root cores. They won't be functional at all again. For your orchid to live it would need to grow new roots. Your leaf turned yellow and fell off because the plant has no way to absorb water and nutrients since there are no roots. It is dehydrated and dying. Also, Phals don't have pseudobulbs so they don't have a way to store water and nutrients. Sorry but I think your Phal is not going to make it.

In the future don't use decorative glazed pots like the one you potted it in. I made that mastake with my first orchid too. You can use it as a outer pot that you slip the orchid into for decoration but don't plant it directly in a pot like that. Always pick a pot that has many drainage holes and only is big enough to fit the root ball snugly. If you over pot you will have too much extra medium that stays wet too long and that ends in root rot. I would just go out and buy a new plant. Learning to grow orchids usually means loosing a few too, so don't feel too bad. Good luck!

Oh and if you haven't already, read the Phal abuse ends here thread. It is long but has tons of valuable information.

[katie3718]

Root cores, okay thanks - i was looking online to try to figure it out, but couldn't find anything.

So yes, now I know to keep the pot smaller. I think I had switched to like a 6", then I bought a 4" and was planning on using that, once/if my plant recuperated.

I won't lie i am pretty sad, but if it doesn't make it, at least i fought the good fight! At at least now I'm more knowledgeable.

I did find the first person in my city that seems to know a thing or two about orchids yesterday, and he suggested that I bring it to him for input. I think i'll do this tomorrow to see if his hands-on observation reveals anything that could help salvage my plant. He also commented that my pot could have been too big I had no idea. Someone on here actually suggested to upgrade size-wise from my first pot, but I think I over-did it.

That makes sense about the dehydration causing the yellow leaf... That guy i met also actually mentioned the fact that my big pot could have been the culprit of this unfortunate turn of events.

My mom bought a beautiful orchid from cost-co the other day. If my orchid does not make it, I think I'll adopt hers as my own.

Thanks again everyone, all your input has been so valuable. I always appreciate people who help out other people in forums, because I am the type of person who typically uses forums to seek out information... not provide it to others lol. So it's very kind of you. I'll have to pay it forward with a subject I'm better at. Like Spanish. Lol.

Katie

[Wynn Dee13]

Let us know what the orchid guy says after you show him your plant. Good luck!

[katie3718]

Let's see, he didn't say much, he said that it looked like it could make a come back, but this time around I feel like maybe he wasn't quiteeeee as knowledgeable as I had thought. It still felt good to hear that my plant may make it

[Wynn Dee13]

Well keep us posted on your phal. Good luck!