Examining Roots on New Phals (Pics)

[Gail]

I fell in love with these two NOID Phals at Trader Joe's the other day.




While there was no evidence of a problem, I decided to check the roots later that day and this is what I found.

Not surprising, the appearance after removing the plastic liner.


The notorious moss core.

On one plant, the few roots in the area were stunted and obviously not healthy.

While both plants showed some root rot, this one was more extreme.


I trimmed off the bad roots, let the plants sit out overnight to let them dry a bit and to allow the cuts to seal. They were potted in moist CHCs, perlite and charcoal. Two days later, the blooms look great.

Note, I used a combination of the two plants' root photos because their conditions were similar.

[Orchidgirl83]

From those pics the roots look great! I love love love that phal in the first picture!

[Brooke]

You picked up some beautiful Phals. One has great roots and the other has really great roots!

Lucky you!

Brooke

[Tim C.]

I agree - both of the photos show great root growth. The first one, where the middle roots are lacking, is the only one I'd be mildly concerned about, and even then there is no sign of rot that I can see. In the second photo, the brown striping on the one root looks to just be discoloration from the moss.

-Tim

[Gail]

Thanks, guys, I appreciate your input.
Maybe I was being paranoid about root rot. I'm glad to have it in a mix that will help with good aeration.

---------- Post added at 05:02 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:55 PM ----------

Originally Posted by Orchidgirl83

From those pics the roots look great! I love love love that phal in the first picture!

Yes, "Orchidgirl", I took my time looking over the 20 or so plants that they had displayed and my eyes kept jumping back to that one.

[tsun1108]

Great roots and healthy plants! Love the flowers too

[PaxTea]

Oh yay! I'm glad that you actually started a thread! If a lot of people contribute, then this will become a good resource for anybody trying to learn how to "read" the roots on a new plant.

These pictures were all taken pretty soon after I got the plant home.

The first two are pictures of a Phal that I got at a local co-operative, where they get their orchids from a local greenhouse.

The third is a picture of a Phal that I got at Home Depot. I think the brand was "Easy Grow Orchids" or something like that. I wish I had taken pictures while I was pulling off the moss, because it was obvious that the orchid had originally been in a 4" pot, and then padded with fresh moss and placed in a 6" pot. The moss in the middle was old and gross and tightly packed.

[Gail]

Looking good, Pea.

Originally Posted by PaxTea

... the orchid had originally been in a 4" pot, and then padded with fresh moss and placed in a 6" pot. The moss in the middle was old and gross and tightly packed.

Yep, I found the same thing. I also found that they charge an extra $5. for that padding.

[PaxTea]

This Phal isn't new, but it's starting to lose it's blooms, so I'm repotting it and seeing the roots for the first time. This is a Just Add Ice mini-phal that I purchased at the grocery store for $9.

Some pictures!

Here's the moss after I cut off the plastic bag:



Here are the roots, after I soaked them in water and K-L-N and picked off the moss:



And finally, here's what I found when I picked away the black stuff that was around the base. I believe the black stuff was from a leaf that was dropped.



I'm trying to decide what, if anything, I should cut. I'm worried about the black stuff that you can see at the very base of the roots as they come off the stem.

Here's a closer picture of the area I'm talking about:



I gave the whole root system a short dunk in hydrogen peroxide and my current thinking is to just pot her up without cutting.

Thoughts?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

"PaxTea" - I wouldn't recommend picking anything else off the mini-Phal you've got. I think it's pretty clean.