While we're on the subject of Keiki...should I pot now?

[Corsetière]

Hello!
The backstory on this is that the mother plant was a Lowe's purchase with extensive root rot. After I got it home, it sprouted the keikis. I cleaned up the root rot which left pretty much no roots on the mother plant. It had a brief renaissance after I cleaned up the dead roots and that's when the keiki grew all the roots it has now. However, the mother plant' leaves continue to look wrinkled and limp and now the keikis are losing the turgid quality to their leaves too. I looked at the spike recently and noticed it looks like half of the spike is dying on the side of the oldest keiki. This really concerns me. I know people say you should have 3-4 inches before planting the keikis, but I am not sure what is going on and wonder if it it best to try to separate them from the mother now before they die? I just measured the oldest keiki and it looks like it has about 3 inches of roots and the youngest has about 2 inches. Any thoughts or experience on this?

[cbuchman]

Yes, I would pot them up now. Consider soaking them in KLN or KelpMax before potting to kick start the root growth.

[Corsetière]

Ok, thanks for your advice. I am potting it right now. It's a little nerve wracking. I so desperately want it to survive!

[cbuchman]

With some TLC and regular observation, I'm sure it will thrive. Patience is needed

Good Luck!

[Wild Orchid]

I'd suggest to lightly spray the root area instead of watering and let it dry before the next time. With such tiny roots, all they need is a couple of drops, really.
My 2

The keikis are adorable!

[WhiteRabbit]

How are the roots on that plant? (The parent) It looks extremely dehydrated.

[Corsetière]

There are now no roots left on the parent! There was one root on the parent but when I looked at it yesterday that last root had died off too! It was a pretty rampant case of root rot. I treated with a second course of Physan 20 and after taking off the keikis, I put the parent into sphag and bag. Fingers crossed!

[lornaheath]

Hi Carrie,

Can you just shoot me a quick message please to answer my question . . . . .

Where can I buy a couple of pounds of patience. Can't find any anywhere?

Cheers Hun.

Lorna
x x x

---------- Post added at 01:19 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:42 AM ----------

How's the baby Corsetière?
Hope it does really well.

They grow orchids without soil.
They grow Orchids in just a gel stuff.
They grow orchids in baskets without bark mix.
They grow Orchids on a tree side.

Your little fella should do fine because he is already on his way.

He does have roots ~ lots of them. They are only little but each and every one of them will be seeking water and stuff to maintain life. I think he'll pull through.

Have you dug him into a pot and buried the roots? I think just using a clip to anchor him on the top of the mix might do just as well. Those root babies will dig themselves in.

Keep us updated with a monthly pic Sug.

Lorna
x x x

[Corsetière]

Yes, this patience thing is so hard!

Yes, Lorna, I mostly sat the twins on top of the sphagnum but the very tips of the roots are in the sphag. When I cut the spike to pot the keikis, I notices a good part of the spike was already dead so I think I did the right thing in potting them now. I tried to cut away the dead parts of the spike because of course now I am worried that part will cause rot. Such tricky little things! The younger of the 2 keikis seems to have firmed up really nicely since potting so I hope the older one will improve too!