Now do I do???

[Brownthumb10]

I got a NoID phal in June in bloom. All of the blooms are gone and this is the point when I usually kill my phals. Talk me through the next steps so I don't kill this one. Should I repot it. It is still in the same pot/planting medium from when I got it. What about the spike? Cut it, if so where or leave it. Please help! I have read through the phal sticky but still afraid to do anything. Thanks!

[Bud]

pictures would be very nice to be able to help you....
first thing you do is cut the spike one inch from the bottom. Put the pot under a sink and water it liberally and then let it drain for 5 minutes....put it on your windowsill about a foot away from the glass....

I don't know your environment for you have not put your grow zone= then you must learn about your humidity percentage in the room where you grow your Phal and the average temperature in the day and at night.....so you can learn when to water it and fertilizer it....I water my Phals once a week since I have a humidifier with an oscillating fan....if your environment is dry then you must provide more moisture.
Read online information about Phalaenopsis for beginners. The sticky here has been so long that it got me to sleep on the 5th page....but find out what fertilizer works for you=you may also read online about it.

Don't think about repotting yet but you may want to unpot your plant and check on the roots and put it back on the same pot using the same media mix unless it is decayed and that is when you need to get fresh media mix. I learned how to repot my Phalaenopsis by watching several videos on Youtube.

I cannot spoon feed you instructions on how to grow your orchid....you have to build the initiative to do it....80% of the effort must come from you= the other 20% has to be through research and from what you read in this board....

[tarev]

First I check the roots, so unpot carefully, if in sphag, remove it, sometimes just too much there.

It is a matter of preference for you which media you want to use for it, to keep it in sphag moss or use bark mix. Personally my first choice is bark mix which I have presoaked. Again, different approaches here..some presoak it, others don't. I prefer to presoak since new media takes a lot longer to be really moisture retentive.

Use sterilized cutting tool, to trim down dead roots. Examine the condition of the roots. I prefer to use containers with lots of side holes. Again a matter of preference. Some would like to use plastic containers so they can easily see the condition of the roots. You can also cut off the spike, if it is totally brown, or if it is still green, you can keep it or cut off from above the first node, it may still regrow a secondary spike. Often it is cut off totally especially if the conditions of your roots are dismal. So the plant can redirect its energy to growing new roots.

For the first few weeks, since I use bark mix, I dunk water the root zone every few days. New bark mix dries out fast. I try to avoid watering the leaves, if water does get on them, just remove with paper towel. And I always run our ceiling fan after every watering. You may think it will just dry off the bark mix, for sure it will, but my observation, the plant likes it..air movement all over. In time the plant will acclimate to its new set-up.

What is important the media is not too soggy, and to water as needed. I adjust my watering too as the season changes, with cooler temps it takes awhile for media to dry out.

Your Phal will understandably rest for awhile, but it will be trying to grow new roots or new leaves later on. By mid to late Fall, you can give it some cool air by opening your windows. If it is ready it will help trigger new spikes, so by late winter to Spring you may have a new batch of blooms..or it may miss this season out as it continues to rest.

It would be nice to see a photo of your plant right now. Take photos before and after your repot. Good luck!

[Fuzzy]

What is the overall health of the plant? How are the roots? Any new roots or leaves? If the phal is healthy and thriving, you might want to cut the spike down to the nearest node to try to induce a secondary spike. If it is not in a good shape, cut it all the way down about an inch from the crown to give your phal the maximum energy to recover.

I recently repotted a phal that bloomed June-Sept right after the blooms were spent. This was about 3 weeks ago, and the phal is doing very well, has a new leaf and new roots everywhere, so today I trimmed the spikes (yes, it had 2 spikes!) down to the top nodes. We'll see what happens.

[Leafmite]

It looks as if you have gotten great advice. If you tend to kill orchids in bark, expanded clay pellets work very well. That is what I have to use. :0

[Brownthumb10]

OP here, I will try to get pictures. I am concerned about the roots because the 2 I can see don't look good and some of the leaves are a little wrinkled. When I first got it there was a 'baby leaf' that has fully come in and looks good. No new roots that I can see. It is currently in a bark/moss mixture.

[Leafmite]

It is so easy to over-water phals and rot the roots. I could never get the watering right when they were in bark. I did better with them in expensive New Zealand sphagnum moss. If these ones die, I recommend that when you buy the next set, put them right away in a 'basket' pot with expanded clay pellets. It is very difficult to kill the roots when they are in this set up. I set my basket pots in a clear plastic container for humidity around the roots. When the roots look dry, I water until they turn green again. The set up makes growing orchids so very easy.