Phal with droopy leaves

[littleone]

I've been taking care of my Phal all year but was gone for a week and forgot to water before hand. I came back to one droopy leaf and one wrinkled leaf that looks soft.

I watered it already (soaked in water 10 min) but now I'm not sure what else to do or how I can make sure it's making progress. What kind of time frame should I see improvement in?

I was going to put it outside a few nights for cooler weather in the winter since it lives inside right now - should I still do that?

Any advice appreciated. This is a basic store bought phal from a grocery store that I've had since last February.

[Jade]

One week without water could be a problem during the summer, but I don't think that it could be a problem during this season.
You did right, watering your orchid; now keep checking it regularly.
I don't think that putting your orchid outside could be a good idea. It could be another shock.

[WhiteRabbit]

Might just have been too dry - I don't know how long it had been without water, or what the conditions were while you were gone ... Pix may be helpful, if you can post any.

Regardless of the cause, those leaves are not likely to return to good shape. Other leaves, and any new ones should be fine if the problem has been corrected.

Unless you are in a tropical climate, it's probably too cold out now to put it outside (especially at night).

[littleone]

It is in the 50's here at night but I want to keep an eye on it now . There is still one that is standing up but it's just slightly wrinkled instead of "plump" looking when it had enough water.

I guess I will just make sure to keep checking on it more often.

I had thought about putting it outside because that's what the instructions said that came with the plant but now I feel like it's been set back a little and I don't think I'll do that. Thank you for your thoughts and advice

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

I recommend knocking it out of the pot and checking the roots. If something like this happens, always check the roots first so you know what's going on in order to have the proper amount of information regarding your plant's health so that you can come up with a more informed solution.

A Phal is not just it's leaves, it is also the roots. I'm not being condescending, so if this sounds like so don't take it that way. I say it like this because when problems happen to people's Phals, it often seems like some people usually don't recall or think to check the roots. And when I say check the roots, I mean thoroughly, not just give them a quick glance over. Thoroughly means not just visual inspection, but it includes feeling the roots for firmness and the "pull test" to see if they're still alive. Glancing at your Phal's roots usually indicates to me that the only roots that were accounted for were the ones you can readily see, but the roots that are buried deep within the pot are the ones that are being unaccounted for; and it is usually the ones that are deep within the pot that are horribly damaged. Again, I say it like this for a reason. In past threads, when it was recommended to check the roots, sometimes it was assumed that a quick glance at the surface roots or a quick look at the roots that were at the edges of the pots were good enough. However, when it was insisted on that a more thorough check on the roots be made, to some people's horror, many of the roots that were buried in the center of the pot were the ones that were badly damaged while the ones on the edges of the pot or the ones that grew on the surface of the potting media looked fine. I'm also speaking from personal experience. It happened to me too. I did the same thing, and I found out the hard way. Back then, the internet was at its infancy, I didn't have the luxury of something like an orchid forum to look things up with. This is the reasoning behind the recommendation.

Other than this, I wish you well on your efforts to save your Phal.

[snowflake311]

Has it ever been repotted? Have you ever seen the roots?

I killed my first orchid. I almost killed my other 2. After my white one was done blooming I would water it whenever I remembered. Leafs got all yellow and wrinkled They fell off. But I kept it . One day I noticed the plant had new growth. So I started watering it more often. It came back grew new leafs and has been blooming for me. When I did bring myself to repot it I saw my roots were not that great. The middle had rotten. The new fews ones I had were good. Its doing much better now. I expect my best bloom from it this spring.

My other one... I took it out of the plastic pot and put it in the clay pot. Did not clean off old moss. I just filled added some bark to the pot. Clay will dry out your plant. The orchids leaves got wrinkles and turned yellow. I knew I needed to water it more. I did not know how much more it really needed. I repotted it found some bad roots, but also good ones. Now the plant has made a full recovery and I have 2 spikes. It took a full Year for this plant to recover and give me spikes. I forgot what the flowers even looks like.

SO what I am saying is your plant will be fine. Phals are amazing. With just a little bit of extra love they will recover. Just don't give up. Check the roots. Repot and watch it very close. If you repot in bark do not neglect your plant. New bark will not hold moisture well at first. You might have to water 3 times a week till the bark starts to retain water.

[mimigirl]

Hate to jump in on your post, but i have similar question. Have a phal in full bloom, kept moist new root, new leaf. Bottom leaves are wrinkling. Why?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by mimigirl

Hate to jump in on your post, but i have similar question. Have a phal in full bloom, kept moist new root, new leaf. Bottom leaves are wrinkling. Why?

Same advice as above.

[mimigirl]

So its ok to take out, cut off bad stuff and put new bark even if it is blooming? Suppose the roots look good?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

I just repotted a Masdevallia antonii that I purchased in bud about a week ago, (yes, as soon as I got it too), and it still bloomed.

If I can repot a Masdevallia that was in bud and it'll still bloom, you can repot a Phalaenopsis and quite possibly have an extremely good chance not to have the blooms/buds blast. You want evidence for this, I can provide it.

Don't "suppose". You either know the roots are good, ok, or bad, or you don't know; and "kinda, sorta know" doesn't cut it either.

You must absolutely know without a shadow of a doubt what's going on with the root system if there's a problem with any orchid.

If I ask you how the roots on your orchid is, you must be absolutely certain of your answer. And if I ask for evidence, you can provide the evidence for it without hesitation.

I just got a small bunch of Disas a couple days ago. If I never bothered to check the root systems thoroughly, and just trusted that everything was ok without actually looking for evidence that everything was ok, I would've easily lost the newly acquired Disa aurata within 1 - 2 weeks, I would've lost the newly acquired Disa uniflora in roughly about 1 - 2 weeks as well, and I would've lost my newly acquired Disa tripetaloides within 1 - 2 months. Because I bothered to check and know for certain, I know not to keep them so wet that the roots will continue to rot out. I did not "suppose" the roots are good, ok, or bad; I know that the bunch of Disa aurata and Disa uniflora are in rough shape and would be considered in critical condition, while the Disa tripetaloides are in decent shape, but still need to be checked upon religiously before I can say they are truly out of the clear.

Get what I mean?

Let's put it another way…

Would you want your doctor to suppose that you're ok without actually checking, or would you rather have a doctor who can tell you whether you're ok or not based on the evidence gathered from a battery of tests and inspections?

So - what's going on with your Phal?