New Orchid owner needs help!

[Becca]

All I have to say is .... WOW! Check out that cool cymbidium pot! It is beautiful! I have read that cymbidiums like narrow deep pots like that....but upon pricing the special pots, they were a little out of my range to purchase. I have found that cymbidiums love semi-hydro culture!

[FinnBar]

congrats on getting started.. and a warm from me too
i'm sure you'll soon realise growing orchids isn't half as tricky as you were afraid of.

[cupcake]

I just love Fred the Frog!

[dwickizer]

Thanks so much for the information. I decided to repot the poor thing and see if I could save it...I'm not too sure I can. Under the surface moss was solid sawdust which was still moist after not watering for a week. I carefully peeled away layer after layer, hoping to find some good growth. Every root was soft and white with dark spots, obviously rotting, and when I trimmed them up I was left with one or two little stubs under some beautifully green and healthy leaves, which I carefully put into the pot with orchid medium and placed on my living room table. It gets indirect light most of the day with about 1 1/2 hours of filtered light in the afternoon. I am hoping to be able to salvage at least one of the 3 plants but I'm not holding my breath. They were really in very bad condition.

I have already warned my husband that I have found a new hobby...yes, growing orchids. It is a good thing he is a patient man...we married 4 years ago and when we were packing my belongings from my home he painstakingly carted barrels of my carefully crafted organic soil, which I had been working for 4 years, to our new home. He affectionately called my dirt the "Damn Dirt" which caught on in my small community and neighbors were stopping by to meet me and see my "Damn Dirt" and the lovely plants that grew therein!
I wll be addng orchids to my collection when I return home.

[shakkai]

Hi again, Deb. Good to see that you got those Phals out of what would have been certain death for them. Even with very little root left, you have a chance at saving them. Phals can re-establish themselves even when they have practically no roots left.

For example, see this thread:
http://www.orchidboard.com/community...rinkley-3.html


The trick is to keep the humidity around them high enough for them to start putting out new roots. To do this, some people do what called 'Sphag & Bag'. Here is more information about that:
http://www.orchidboard.com/community...treatment.html

Good luck with your plants! And welcome to the beginning of a wonderful life-long hobby!

[dwickizer]

Originally Posted by Dorothy

WELCOME DEB!
Glad you can join us here at the OB
I have found a site on Korean orchids which may help you ID your cymbid - Korean Orchids
I agree with everything Shak says about your phal - get it out of potting soil and once in a good orchid medium - after watering - allow the roots to dry - I let mine go 5 to 7 days if not longer at times - you can place a bamboo stick or chop stick in the medium to use as a moisture gauge - if the stick is cool and a bit moist to your face .. let it go another day longer .. then water.

Thanks for the advise Dorothy. The Koren site is awesome! I wish I understood it but I do not speak the language! It does appear that there is some kind of Orchid Festival though, so I'll ask my friends and watch for it. Thanks again!
Deb

[dwickizer]

Originally Posted by shakkai

Hi again, Deb. Good to see that you got those Phals out of what would have been certain death for them. Even with very little root left, you have a chance at saving them. Phals can re-establish themselves even when they have practically no roots left.

For example, see this thread:
http://www.orchidboard.com/community...rinkley-3.html


The trick is to keep the humidity around them high enough for them to start putting out new roots. To do this, some people do what called 'Sphag & Bag'. Here is more information about that:
http://www.orchidboard.com/community...treatment.html

Good luck with your plants! And welcome to the beginning of a wonderful life-long hobby!

Thanks for the encouragement. I will proceed with expectations of life and new growth! Would Freddie Frog, the humidifier, lend the necessary humidity?

[dwickizer]

Originally Posted by gixrj18

The yellow one looks like Cymbidium Golden Elf. I have this one, it is sold sometimes at the Home Depots, around here. Cymbidiums are well-known as ground orchids, commonly used in some landscapes. So, you can use soil....but I would layer it with some bark and rocks. Most Cymbidiums are cool-growing, however, some have been hybridized to warm-growing....I believe yours is a warm one. Bark is also okay for the purple Phal, also. There are a number of good mediums for this one (I like to use a little humus sprinkled in with whatever I use), just make sure that whatever you use has plenty of air pockets.....so the roots can breathe. I layer everything, since that's how nature does it! If you are having black rot, or any type of fungus, I would suggest copper fungicide (to kill the fungus), and there are several fungicides out there that are good for maintainence. I would cut out any fungus (to keep it from spreading), and apply cinammon to the wound (to dry it up). Make sure you sterilize your cutting tools (with an open flame) before you use them on your orchids......always! Hope this helps, good luck!

Thanks Jasen. I think you are correct in the ID of my Cymbidium...it does look like the photos of the Golden
Elf. It seems perfectly hapy in its' current container, but I t does seem a bit crowded. There appear to be 10 separate "stalks" in the pot and I really would like to prepare it to bloom again. Any suggestions?
Deb

[dwickizer]

Originally Posted by RPfeiffer

All I have to say is .... WOW! Check out that cool cymbidium pot! It is beautiful! I have read that cymbidiums like narrow deep pots like that....but upon pricing the special pots, they were a little out of my range to purchase. I have found that cymbidiums love semi-hydro culture!

Thanks Becca. The orchid came in that pot and they seem to be very common here in Korea. They line the windows in thousands of shops and apartments all over Korea and I found some at our little nieghborhood flower shop this afternoon but couldn't check on price since they were closed. Thanks for the advice!
Deb

[dwickizer]

Originally Posted by cupcake

I just love Fred the Frog!

He is my little prince! He keeps things cozy and comfey around here in the very dry winter...and he is so cute! My Cymbidium loves hom too!