Yellowing leaves question - Orchid Board

RNCollins · #1 01-01-2014, 02:14 PM

Hello! My Phals two bottom leaves have turned yellow and are falling off. There is a total of 6 healthy green leaves left. It has one spike. I know that Phals prefer to be warm. The room that I keep my phal at is around 58-60 F at night, 68 during the day. In the summer it goes outside in a screened porch.

My question is: is this room too cold for this orchid? Has the cold room caused the leaves to fall off?

billc · #2 01-01-2014, 03:02 PM

Hi RN, Your phal would probably like to be warmer during the day but I don't think those temps would cause the leaves to yellow and fall off. I'm assuming it's a hybrid phal. Sometime leaves get old and their time has come. If the other leaves look good I wouldn't worry about it. If you can give some more warmth that would be best, but the plant will survive at the temps you have it at now. It will just not do anything much until it starts to warm up.

Bill

RNCollins · #3 01-01-2014, 03:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by billc

Hi RN, Your phal would probably like to be warmer during the day but I don't think those temps would cause the leaves to yellow and fall off. I'm assuming it's a hybrid phal. Sometime leaves get old and their time has come. If the other leaves look good I wouldn't worry about it. If you can give some more warmth that would be best, but the plant will survive at the temps you have it at now. It will just not do anything much until it starts to warm up.

Bill

Hi Bill!

Yes, it is a hybrid phal. The other leaves are in good shape. I have it potted it a mix of bark, charcoal, and perlite. In the winter I water about once a week. Could the leaves be falling off because it's too dry?

Carol

WeirdGuySeattle · #4 01-01-2014, 03:41 PM

6 healthy leaves is a lot for a phal - I've seen them with only two doing spectacularly well. I've got one limping along with only a single leaf and it still tries to bloom.

8 leaves probably meant it felt okay for the oldest two (as in your case) to drop - it happens as they get old, they aren't as efficient in collecting light as the new ones, and the energy is better spent on growing new leaves / flowers / roots than hanging on to some old leaves.

If they were leaves in the middle of the plant, I would look for bugs or damage to the leaves where they meet the stem. If they were the top two leaves I'd be more worried - then you might look for root problems or water sitting in the crown of the plant.

billc · #5 01-01-2014, 05:02 PM

If it were too dry the other leaves to start to look limp. At those temps watering once a week sounds about right. Stick a wooden skewer into the mix for 10-15 minutes next time you think you should water and see if it comes out dry. If you've had the plant for a while you should be able to tell by the weight of the pot.
WeirdGuySeattle is right, 6-8 leaves is a good count on a phal as long as they look healthy.
Bring it to the Jan. meeting and we can all critique it

Bill

magicatt · #6 01-01-2014, 06:50 PM

I would just like to add, if your pot is clear, look at the roots, if they are wet they will be green so don't water. If they look silver/grey, that means they are dry so drench them good and wait for the silver/grey again.

My phals lose a bottom leaf or two every year naturally. It is nothing to be scared of. You have lots of leaves on your phal, mine only have four or six usually so you are doing good in that department.

relax. Look at the roots, let them tell you when to water.