What on earth????!!!!! My phal changed color

[AnonYMouse]

I've seen color change in hydrangea and some ground cover flowers. Those are results of change in pH. Violets in concrete containers or borders tend to be faded due to the lime in the concrete. You can add commercially available supplement to hydrangea to change their color.

I have never seen this exhibited in orchids.

[RosieC]

I would vote for that not being the same plant. It's not just the colour, the flowers of the first are the smooth texture you get in some of these white phals, the purple one has texture/ridging with the veins in the sepals (as shown in the picture of the back of it).

[gardengirl13]

Originally Posted by Stray59

Gardengirl:
Wow - you have so many people in a quandary now! I hate to say it, but the color change you have shown is just not possible from the same plant. It's not just the color, but the overall shape of the petals, etc. - that just does not happen. But you are soooo sure of this being the same plant that it makes me want it to be, for your sake.
I hate to be the one that brings this up, but how sure are you about that husband of yours? He is in the home and thus has the opportunity to do a switch-aroo. Do you have any truth serum around? or, perhaps some thumb screws?
You obviously have a great dislike of this coloring, so maybe God is just screwing with you - but that would take us back to the thought that the plant changed colors, and again, outside of heavenly intervention, that is just not possible.
I would just take this as another reason to purchase a new orchid - or two or three. Get a really nice pure white one - MARK IT AS WHITE and let someone else enjoy this purple striped one - and mark this up as one of life's great mysteries.
BTW - what other color phalae's do you have? Could one of them be the white-one-that-got-away?
I hope you work this out - something like that can drive you nuts! If a solution is found, let us know - you have a lot of us quizzing over it now!
Steve
P.S. - You have a VERY healthy looking plant here - obviously you know what you are doing when it comes to growing Phalae's!

Yes I trust my husband ha ha ha!!! He once ruined a piece of artwork and told me the second it happened. He'd rather tell me and replace it with something better then get in trouble later on! ha ha!

The other color phals I have are a yellowish whitish with maroon spots, a magenta one, a pink one, a blush very light pink that's closer to white (but this has small flowers and is a smaller plant as I've only had it a year) then one that's kind of blush pink mixed with an apricoty type color. None of them are white and I have not thrown a phal away in over two years. I've only killed an oncid in the last two years and that was obviously not a phal so no mistaking it! ha ha!

And yes I really don't like this color at all. I would have never bought it. My husband knows what I like and wouldn't have bought it. We have only vacationed away once since last spring and it was only three days so no orchid sitter. Last spring after it bloomed I did change it to a different pot but am still using my normal potting mix from the same company. When I get home tonight I'll pour some of the fert into a glass and see how close the colors are. I'm still thinking it's that since there is no other reason.

And no this is not an april fools joke, I wish it was as if this stays purple I will have to sell it. I really REALLY loved my white orchid!

As for the photos looking different, that white flower was open for a few weeks, the purple one still isn't open all the way yet so I don't want to judge it just yet.

And yes I only have a few orchids, I know them all by heart, I tend to them every day. This is the same plant. There is no way it's a different plant. I know that may be hard to believe but it's true. I'd have no reason to lie about it, not saying anyone thinks that. But there is no way I would have bought this plant if it was this current coloring. If I wanted a white and purple one I would have gotten on with a very different pattern.

I am having an issue with two of my glazed pots, maybe that is contributing to this. I have no clue. But I'm switching them all to terracotta per-emtively to make sure none get root damage. Only 2 of them have been effected (this white phal being one- when watering noticed a root rotting next to the glaze) so I want everyone to be healthy so I'm doing this now instead of waiting.

Thanks for your help everyone. I know we may never know what happened. I just guess we have to wait for next spring to see what happens with the next spike.

[SlipperGirl]

I love the color of this phal I cant wait for the one I have to bloom

[gardengirl13]

I e-mailed Jack's to see if this could be possible and they think it's most likely a mutation. sigh. I miss my white. I know I'm making a big deal over this, but as I said this was my third orchid ever and the first to re-bloom so I have this crazy attachment to it that I'm sure all of you understand. ha ha!

[aquarius2413]

The same exact thing happened to my sister's Dendrobium. She swears up and down that the color of blooms on her favorite orchid of over 4 years has turned. It was all purple and now the blooms are green with a dark pink inside. I told her it was impossible and offered her various scenarios that could have happened (dif ork, wrong tag, her bf killed and replaced it lol, etc.) but she is attentive to her orchids! Pretty odd......

[camille1585]

Originally Posted by gardengirl13

I e-mailed Jack's to see if this could be possible and they think it's most likely a mutation. sigh. I miss my white. I know I'm making a big deal over this, but as I said this was my third orchid ever and the first to re-bloom so I have this crazy attachment to it that I'm sure all of you understand. ha ha!

It doesn't mean that this is a permanent mutation, all depends where it was. Sort of like a peloric Phal, who may bloom peloric once, and then never again. I've been thinking about the mutation aspect still, since I still think it's the most likely answer. Seems like a mutation in the gene that controls pigment synthase. Having access to all the scientific databases, I'll see if I can find some literature on these sort of mutations!

[gardengirl13]

Originally Posted by aquarius2413

The same exact thing happened to my sister's Dendrobium. She swears up and down that the color of blooms on her favorite orchid of over 4 years has turned. It was all purple and now the blooms are green with a dark pink inside. I told her it was impossible and offered her various scenarios that could have happened (dif ork, wrong tag, her bf killed and replaced it lol, etc.) but she is attentive to her orchids! Pretty odd......

Wow I thought I was the only one! ha ha!! I feel like I'm insane to have this happen to me.

Originally Posted by camille1585

It doesn't mean that this is a permanent mutation, all depends where it was. Sort of like a peloric Phal, who may bloom peloric once, and then never again. I've been thinking about the mutation aspect still, since I still think it's the most likely answer. Seems like a mutation in the gene that controls pigment synthase. Having access to all the scientific databases, I'll see if I can find some literature on these sort of mutations!

Thank you so much Camille. I've been looking all over online and can't find much info on mutations that aren't more leaf shape changes, not much on color changes. The only things I can find are why did my purple phal flower white this year, well they're dyed and are supposed to be white is the answers. No where can I find info on a white flower turning purple. I hope you can find info on this! I feel like I'm the only person this has happened to. Like you said, even the spike being purple is odd. I've had the leaves on some phal get purpley due to too much light, but this is a different kind. And it's been in the same spot on my windowsill for 4 years. So the sun it gets is fine (plus the purple bit on the leaves are on the side of the plant that never gets any sun.)

[silken]

I would be tempted to buy some fast growing and blooming white bedding plant and fertilize it well with your purple plant food and see if it blooms pink or purple. If it does, I would settle for that as an explanation. If not, then it will still be a mystery.

[gardengirl13]

Originally Posted by silken

I would be tempted to buy some fast growing and blooming white bedding plant and fertilize it well with your purple plant food and see if it blooms pink or purple. If it does, I would settle for that as an explanation. If not, then it will still be a mystery.

Hmmm good idea. Trying to think what may be good. A million bells maybe?

Problem with that is none of the other flowers are tinged. I have that blush/buttery small phal that has it's normal color. Would the purple fert maybe make a mutation come out? I was told some white phals have a pinkish undertone that comes out with more light and looks kind of purple but nothing like this.