BLC. Greenwich 'Elmhurst' AM/AOS with droppy, bent over leaves

[SJF]

Hi,
I purchased this and am wondering if you could help me? Is this normal for the leaves to look like this? It came this way. I e-mailed the vendor and they told me, " that is typical for our Elmhurst clones. Once they get larger they stand upright." Does that sound right or is something up with it? If it looks like a problem how do I help it?
Thanks for looking

[WhiteRabbit]

I'm not familiar with the specific hybrid, but do have some Catts that do this, and they're fine ...

[shushu45]

My Catt came like that too. I just places the leaves against an orchid trellis. It seems just fine to me.

[nlm2951]

I have some like that too, but I think its needs to be repot.

[SJF]

Originally Posted by WhiteRabbit

I'm not familiar with the specific hybrid, but do have some Catts that do this, and they're fine ...

Thanks Sonya

---------- Post added at 08:03 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:03 PM ----------

Originally Posted by shushu45

My Catt came like that too. I just places the leaves against an orchid trellis. It seems just fine to me.

Thank you

---------- Post added at 08:05 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:03 PM ----------

Originally Posted by nlm2951

I have some like that too, but I think its needs to be repot.

Thank you.

I think so too. It can't stand on it's own. It needs to be in a heavy pot or leaning against something or it immediately tips over

[silken]

I have the odd one that does that too!

[james mickelso]

My Blc Greenwich "Elmhurst" doesn't exhibit this. I can tell you that this came from crowded conditions and needed more light. The dark green isn't normal for this orchid. The lighter green is more common for orchids that have been given the proper light level. When plants are crowded together on a bench they reach for the light and when they don't get enough they produce softer less turgid leaves. It will recover. The leaf in pic one has mechanical damage. It definitely needs a repot. What type media is it growing in and have you pulled it out of the pot to see how the roots are? These look to be very healthy roots. I am curious about what the base of the pbulbs look like. There should be some new emerging buds starting to grow from the bases of the older pbulbs. If there are no new emerging pbulbs I would just take this out of the pot, carefully pull out as much of the old media as you can without damaging the roots too much and repot this. Just drop it in a new pot that is about 1-2 inches larger than the current pot, and fill with a medium mix of bark/perlite/charcoal. Then you can water it more often. If the mix is too small you could induce wet conditions and develop root rot. Can we see some closer clear pics of the bases of the pbulbs?

[SJF]

Originally Posted by james mickelso

My Blc Greenwich "Elmhurst" doesn't exhibit this. I can tell you that this came from crowded conditions and needed more light. The dark green isn't normal for this orchid. The lighter green is more common for orchids that have been given the proper light level. When plants are crowded together on a bench they reach for the light and when they don't get enough they produce softer less turgid leaves. It will recover. The leaf in pic one has mechanical damage. It definitely needs a repot. What type media is it growing in and have you pulled it out of the pot to see how the roots are? These look to be very healthy roots. I am curious about what the base of the pbulbs look like. There should be some new emerging buds starting to grow from the bases of the older pbulbs. If there are no new emerging pbulbs I would just take this out of the pot, carefully pull out as much of the old media as you can without damaging the roots too much and repot this. Just drop it in a new pot that is about 1-2 inches larger than the current pot, and fill with a medium mix of bark/perlite/charcoal. Then you can water it more often. If the mix is too small you could induce wet conditions and develop root rot. Can we see some closer clear pics of the bases of the pbulbs?

Thanks, here are some close ups

edit to add: pictures four and five are of opposite sides of the same pbulb

[SJF]

Originally Posted by silken

I have the odd one that does that too!

Thanks, Silken

[james mickelso]

I see a couple of very nice fat buds on the one pbulb which I think is the newest one in the group. That is what is important here. The media looks to be CHC (coc husk) and down inside under the root mass it probably stays wet while the top dries out. So be careful with your watering. Greenwich Elmhurst is very suseptable to root rot. I would repot this now as I saw some new roots growing. I would put it in Bark/perlite/charcoal for maximum drainage and drying. Just take it out of this pot and put it into another and fill with new mix. get as much of the old mix out as you can like I said before. This orchid is beautiful when in bloom. Pale greenish yellow with a fabulous scent. Nice big flowers. Don't over pot it. Just an extra inch around the edge of the new pot.