Bud Blast! Hate spag!

[blueeyesjay]

Alright, I'm going heed some advice... I've let it soak for a little while, so I'll give it a week and hopefully it heals itself. The leaves have yet to wrinkle so there still may be some hope

[blueeyesjay]

Alrighty, so I soaked the spag yesterday morning, and came home to check out how my 'love' phal was doing.

The spag was still soaking wet, so I carefully ran water over it and loosened/pulled off the spag. The roots look very healthy, although overly a few are overly dry. I think the day of soaking helped the overly dry ones. After pulling the spag off, I gently/carefully repotted it in the same pot (perfect size still) with some orchid medium bark that I got last month at an orchid show (mostly bark, a little bit of spag, some perlite I think [little white spongey rocks).

So, I'm crossing my fingers that with some attention, more water (now that the medium drys significantly quickers), and the fact that I can see the roots, I won't lose anymore buds, and my new phal will thrive at home.

Since I've switched the medium, should I water the phal everytime the medium is dry-ish (for example, the roots appear dry, no condensation on the pot, the medium appears dry) or should I be cautious because this could over water the roots????

[butterfly_muse]

Give it a nice soak in some water. It is thirsty. Whenever I water mine I give them a good, long soak. Granted, they're potted in bark. I have no experience with sphag moss. But your orchid is thristy. And pretty.

[Carpe Diem]

When the roots look silvery, it's time to water. After a good soak the roots will be green. If you did not pre-soak the bark before repotting, your Phal. will need watering more often, but in time the bark will hold moisture better. Just look at the roots and you will know when to water. Good Luck!

[Bud]

Tucker is right....it is dehydrated.
You inherited it dry and waited two and a half weeks to give it an ounce of water??!!
Your plant growing insticts are way off....
I'd get it out of the sphag under flowing water in the sink carefully not breaking any healthy roots (make sure there is no moss ball at the center of the roots) and repot it with whatever media mix you mentioned. I think you can use the same pot.
The running water helping you clean the roots will help hydrate it but not rot the crown.
Then find your watering and fertilizer regimen according to your grow zone and your indoor environment.

---------- Post added at 08:51 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:49 PM ----------

you repotted already ...that is good

[rosemadder]

Even if you leave a newly bought orchid in the same pot it came with and disturb it as little as possible, the plant is still under stress from the shipping and time in the store, and needs to adjust yet again to a new environment and new conditions when you get it home. Some bud/flower loss at that time is very common. From the plant's perspective, the worst time to be sold is while it is in bloom-- but that's when they sell, so it happens all the time. Some folks actually chop off all the blooming spikes right away to encourage the plant to focus on new roots. Don't be too attached to the flowers; more will come if the plant is healthy. My new phals have kept most of the flowers they arrived with, but the new buds are all going kaput. I don't mind since the roots seem happy.

Phal leaves are usually very firm and stiff. For them to bend like what we see in the pictures, they're wilting. If the plant ever "seems dry", go ahead and water it! As long as the plant has good air flow around the roots, and the water can drain well, it should be pretty content.

I'm pretty new myself, so I like to use transparent containers so I can see what's happening in there.

[butterfly_muse]

I bought bamboo skewers at wally world it's like a dollar for a billion of them. I keep them in my orchids and pull them out every few days. If the skewer is dry, I soak. If not, I wait.

[Houston]

Give the bark a good soaking by setting it in water again and then mentally note how heavy it feels. In about a week or less it should be dry again and will feel considerably lighter. Using a wooden skewer also works, you'll eventually just get a feel for it by picking the pot up.

[blueeyesjay]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I've killed a ton of orchids from overwatering (which is why I've underwatered this one pretty significantly).

I was wondering if anyone knows how long it takes for the leaves to become firm again? They're not wilted/rigid yet, just leathery and floppy.

I put it in new medium (bark mostly) on Wednesday after a good soaking. Came home yesterday and it was dry again (no condensation, roots appear white not green), so I gave it another soaking for about 5-10 minutes (roots appear plump and green). Hopefully when I get home, its dry-ish. . . Again, I'd rather have it slightly underwatered then cause root rot (seriously killed at least 10-15 phals in the past year from it). If its dry when I get home, I'll soak it tomorrow morning.

So, any idea how long it takes for the leaves to get firm again?

[NYCorchidman]

Many phals are sold here super tightly packed in moss as well. Sometimes they come in bark, which is much easier to deal with.
Anyways, I am lazy as far as repotting. so I only do it when it is absolutely called for.
Also I try not to disturb the plant in bloom.

With that said, two of the latest phals bought from Whole Foods Market about three months ago, are now out of bloom and started to grow new leaves. They are still in the tightly packed moss. I probably need to repot as some roots don't look that great.

Both plants were in bloom for about three months without losing a single flower. I watered them about once every week or ten days, but little bit, say, half cup. The focus was to keep them hydrated but not drowning them.

Flowers can prematurely drop for a number of reasons as Tucker pointed out above.

The best thing I would do in your situation, to take some of those moss out and put the plant back in its pot. was the moss very moist when you took it out of the pot? you mentioned you had to fan dry it.
I was surprised because you watered only 1 oz of water in two weeks.

I would also check if you have cold draft hitting the plant. Are there ripe fruits nearby?
These are also common reasons for flowers (and buds) drop.