Orchid stopped growing, leaves drooping, roots drying
Hey all,
I need some help with my orchid. Around June, my orchid lost an old leaf and started growing new leaves/roots, which I was very happy about. There was a lot of growth, until around one month later in July, some type of mold grew on the dead leaf near the crown. I used hydrogen peroxide 3% to get rid of it. There was a little more growth after this but then I also started getting major gnat issues. It seems like the plant completely stopped growing and I noticed a slight droop on the lowest leaf. I have been trying to water less to control the gnat problem so I am unsure if that caused minor drop on the leaves. I did a couple weeks of soap spray and more hydrogen peroxide to try to get rid of gnats and their eggs.
In late July, since I couldn't seem to solve the gnat problem, I had to repot the plant. The plant was originally in about 70-80% moss. It seems like all the old root were completely rotted and only the new roots were the surviving ones. I decided to replant in mostly bark (about 80%) to keep the plant from getting too wet again. I soaked all the medium and the plant in 1 Tablespoon PHYSAN 20 per gallon of water - which is according to the dividing plants/rot directions.
After repotting, the condition of my orchid have been getting worst and worst. The leaves are almost completely drooping and this weird brownish stain, almost like rust is appearing on some of the roots. Although the roots near the surface are still full, I can see that some of the roots deeper in the pot are turning yellow, cracking or shriveling up. My plant has also been drying up too much, roots became white after full waterings within 2-3 days. I would water on Sunday and have to water again on Wednesday. This happened for two weeks and there have been no more root growth. Last week, instead of watering normally, I tried to just mist the plant every day to promote root growth but it did not work. Today I added more moss to the plant so there is about 60%bark/40% moss and will water regularly again. Pics are attached.
Here are some questions I have:
1- What is the browning on the roots? Did the hydrogen or Physan 20 harm my roots somehow?
2- Since the leaves are still green, does the drooping just mean the plant needs more water? If this is the case, why do the roots seem to be dying from rot?
3- Is it normal to have roots stop growing in August or is my plant stressed out? What are other ways to promote root growth?
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