Can my phals be saved?

[Jun]

Hi, I recently bought 2 pots of phals. After 1 month their flowers started to wither. I cut the spike Andy check the roots. They were rotten and soggy. I cut away the rotten roots potted them in charcoal.
(The pots were left under the foyer outdoors. It is average 80% everyday. average 29 deg Celsius here.)

This is a photo one month after repotting.


Only one phal started to grow a new root.
I'm not sure about the other phal though.

Are the roots healthy? Should I cut away more roots?
Should I plant in water culture?

[bil]

Read the sticky on 'The Phal abuse stops here.'

Tbh, phals are so common, that unless it was something damn rare or special, you might as well bin it and buy a better one. (Just read the thread first, ok?) Alternatively, you might like to try and save them as a learning exercise.

[mtorchid]

The only problem with bringing drowned phals back from the dead is that word gets out and people will bring their soggy phals to you to revive. However, as bil mentioned it is a good exercise and in addition, it's a nice feeling to save a plant.

My approach is to remove any rotted roots and withered leaves and set the plant on top of New Zealand moss in a much larger plastic pot than would be used to re-pot it and water daily. The soaked moss will keep the area humid but not saturated so the roots will dry slightly between waterings. Kelp treatment with fertilizer also helps new roots form quickly. Good luck!