Help me rescue my phael

[avbrando]

I have an orchid (honestly, I'm not even sure what genus/species. I THINK it's a phael from what I am told).

Please bear in mind that this is my first orchid. I have done a lot of research leading up to my receiving the orchid. Here's what I have been doing:
-Watering once every six days (Living on Long Island, should the environment have any bearing on the performance)
-Planted in orchid bark
-Placed in indirect sunlight on the east side of the house, away from the air conditioning vent.

Got it 8/25/12 in a clay pot from a friend who was giving many of her house plants away as she was moving. It was planted in potting soil. It had five leaves, one of which was pretty badly damaged from a picture frame falling on it.

I repotted it in orchid bark.

This is what it looked like this morning (9/8/12- only two weeks later):



-It lost a leaf this morning that was practically brown.
-Another is starting to yellow.

What should I do?? Please please please help. I want it to thrive and bloom!!!

[Silje]

Hello and welcome!

I think you've come to the right place. There are people here that can give you great advice for reviving this phal (yes, it is a phalaenopsis orchid).

I'm not one of them though, but my first thought is that I think we need to have a look at the roots of this phal... You said potting soil as previous growth medium? Might be that the roots are rotting away, even if you have potted into more suitable bark mix now.

I've got my fair share of phal lives on my conscience and I find that when I try to revive phals, it is important for me to always be able to see the roots. Then I can visually inspect them daily or even several times per day to monitor the progress.

So I suggest taking it out of the pot, inspect the roots. Cut away whatever is rotten or dead and put it into a (as small as possible) clear plastic pot. Just to be able to keep track of what's happening both over and under ground.

[WhiteRabbit]

Yes, that's a Phalaenopsis. Looks a bit rough, but not bad. That leaf might just be naturally dying off - but do think you might want to check the roots.

[Bill U.]

One thing to think about is that you have potted the plant in an (unglazed) clay pot- these types of pots will actually dry out faster than plastic because the clay will be able to "breathe" the moisture through. So even if you are watering often without checking the moisture, your plant may be drying out before you know it. I recommend potting into plastic pots that have good drainage- clear plastics are awesome because they allow you to see the roots without disturbing them!

It is a high possibility that your phal's roots are rotting, especially if they were grown in regular garden soil before you had gotten it. That being said, if the phal was trying to survive in the soil by putting out growths- those growths are grown ONLY to their conditions, which is why many people lose their phals when switching from very moist moss to bark mixes. If you can keep it alive until it has new root growth, then those roots will be growing as needed for their new bark mix environment. If the soil was kept moist, then the roots may just be craving more water or they might just be suffocating because regular soil does not allow them to breathe sufficiently *very important for phals

Take some pictures of the roots so we can help you more!

[avbrando]

Thanks for your input everyone. Going right to the nursery when I wake up tomorrow to get a clear pot.

Bill, here is a picture of the roots...



I know it's not a great photo, but I didn't want to disturb it TOO much. Some of them look pretty healthy. Some are absolutely withered. It is obvious that there is still remnants of potting soil. Should I work harder to get that out of there?

Tell me what you're thinking.

Thanks again!!!

[avbrando]

(and yes, you were right about your guess that they were dry. I had to water them a bit.)

[Bill U.]

Okay, starting with the roots- they don't look they are in horrible shape, but they definitely do not look happy to me. First thing that I would do is use a kitchen sink faucet to have lukewarm water splash over the roots before you repot your phal into the clear pot to get the rest of the soil off. It is really important to make sure that the roots can breathe because they are the majority of what the entire plant is using to breathe- phalaenopsis are epiphytes= "air growers" they don't like soil or dense peat at all because it will suffocate them.

After getting all of the soil off, I would go through the roots and see with ones are exceptionally soft and mushy and cut them out with a sterile utensil (don't want to introduce bacteria/viruses to an already stressed plant). After I cut roots, I dab the cut ends (the ones still attached to the rest of the plant) with a little bit of cinnamon (regular baking or cooking cinnamon works) to work as a natural antifungal. Then after trimming the roots- pot it in the smallest clear plastic -preferably UV treated plastic or polypropylene (recycling code #5 is usually printed on the bottom of these) pot that you can fit the roots into.

Pack the bark in fairly tightly to make sure that your phal isn't "wiggly"- it should be pretty firm in its positioning. If you are going to use a new set of bark, soak it in water and rooting hormone for about 24 hours to help get your phal going in the right direction- it will help it produce more roots that are acclimated to the bark. BUT follow the rooting hormone directions VERY CAREFULLY- too much can spell disaster

What I recommend in regards to watering/overall care of your phal is to check it everyday- which DOES NOT mean "change something every day"! But rather, check the bark to see how fast it is drying out since the last watering, check the leaves to see if there is any improvement (because hopefully it won't get any worse), and when there is a spike/blooms, check to see how they are growing, etc.

I would also recommend that you grow your phal either on top of a humidifier tray (can be gotten from nursery supplies) or, as I do, grow my phals on a small plate or bowl that has river stones in it and about 1/4" of water to help provide humidity. When watering, take notice of approximately how heavy the phal (pot and all) feels in your hands and eventually, you will be able to start to get a feel for when the pot starts to feel "lighter", which will signal that it is getting close to watering time again.

I think that would be a good start... Definitely keep us updated and we will help however we can! Good Luck!

[RosieC]

I agree with Bill's advice.

Check for soft/hollow roots and remove them as they are dead. Firm roots are good whatever the colour.

Roots like to breath, so it's good to ensure the medium dries between watering so that the air gaps between the pieces open up (but use a lot of water each time you water, just make sure it's drained well afterwards).

[avbrando]

Thank you Bill and Rosie. I went shopping this morning and got my root hormone, river rocks and humidifier tray. I went to four (FOUR!) different places looking for clear, ventilated plastic pots and no such luck. I did order one online, so I should have that ready to go by the end of this week. Hopefully the leaf will hang on until then...

Thanks again. I will absolutely keep everyone posted.

[avbrando]

Our new setup. Yes, it lost another leaf, but I'm already feeling better about this. Wish us luck! Thanks again everyone for your help!