HELP! Too Much Water in Phalaenopsis

[bil]

Originally Posted by labyrinth1959

I have a phal that is near the end of its flowering cycle and it is putting out a new leaf. My question is should I preemtively cut off the flower stalk to reduce stress or just leave the nature takes it coarse. If the later, should I or should I not cut off the stalk when all the flowers have fallen off?

Well, that's a call you have to make. I'm in favour of cutting off spikes as soon as they are over. Some die back, some don't, and if they don't it makes it untidy next year.

[Optimist]

Originally Posted by labyrinth1959

I have a phal that is near the end of its flowering cycle and it is putting out a new leaf. My question is should I preemtively cut off the flower stalk to reduce stress or just leave the nature takes it coarse. If the later, should I or should I not cut off the stalk when all the flowers have fallen off?

Its up to you. You can cut the spike at any time. I cut the spike off regardless whether there are one or two random buds left. I have one phal which has grown around five braches off a central branch. I'm going to let that one go. I really do feel that if the plant is in stress, cutting the spike reverts the energy back to vegetative growth. I used to kill every phal I got, but cutting the spike, as well as some other cultural thinking outside the box made me pretty good at growing them. In the end, it is your gardening skills that will make them thrive!

[wintergirl]

Originally Posted by labyrinth1959

I have a phal that is near the end of its flowering cycle and it is putting out a new leaf. My question is should I preemtively cut off the flower stalk to reduce stress or just leave the nature takes it coarse. If the later, should I or should I not cut off the stalk when all the flowers have fallen off?

I have flowering phals put out new leaves and I just leave everything. If your plant is healthy I see no reason to cut your flower spike off while still in bloom. It is a personal choice whether to cut the spike after the bloom has died. Some say, "if it's green don't be mean", if the spike is in your way cut it. If it is dried up and dead then cut it down to just above the the first green nodule.

[labyrinth1959]

1. Suppose you need to re-pot a Phal and in the process you find that most of the roots are rotting and mold seems to be on some of the still healthy looking roots. What is the best course of action to take to try to save the plant?

2. Is it reasonable to pot a Phal using only red lava rock?

BTW, I want to thank all the responders to my posts. It has been very helpful.

[Leafmite]

I have very successfully grown the big box store/grocery store Phals in lava rock. They seem to really love it. I currently have one growing in LECA. I do not use bark and rarely, rarely do I use moss with any of my orchids (it is good for rooting back bulbs or rootless seedlings).
What I do is remove all the medium, soak the orchid in water for an hour or two and all the roots that don't get plump, I remove them (usually just by pulling them off). Then, if there are still any good roots, I pot it up in dry red lava rock/LECA and wait about two days before I water.
I use basket pots, too, to help with keeping the roots happy.

With using red lava rock, I usually put the larger pieces in the bottom and middle and smaller pieces on the top. It helps keep everything drying evenly.

If the orchid has no good roots, I will often set up my pot with the lava rock and then, on top, put a little wad of NZ sphagnum moss, then set the rootless orchid on top, staking it well. The moss helps to stimulate roots and protects the orchid's new roots from the sharp edges of the rock. If there is a lack of humidity (such as in the winter), I cover the entire thing with a large, loose clear bag and put somewhere warm. I water the rock (not the moss...until there are roots) to help with humidity. When the roots have gone down into the rock and stabilized the orchid, I gently remove the moss and stakes. Warmth is a big help for encouraging new roots. I currently have a few orchids I have bought and discovered were rootless that are set up staked over red lava rock or LECA. One (an Angraecum) has just started a root and the other (a Cattleya) has a few now growing into the LECA (but still needs to be staked). It is always fun.
Good luck!

[labyrinth1959]

Originally Posted by Leafmite

I have very successfully grown the big box store/grocery store Phals in lava rock. They seem to really love it. I currently have one growing in LECA. I do not use bark and rarely, rarely do I use moss with any of my orchids (it is good for rooting back bulbs or rootless seedlings).
What I do is remove all the medium, soak the orchid in water for an hour or two and all the roots that don't get plump, I remove them (usually just by pulling them off). Then, if there are still any good roots, I pot it up in dry red lava rock/LECA and wait about two days before I water.
I use basket pots, too, to help with keeping the roots happy.

With using red lava rock, I usually put the larger pieces in the bottom and middle and smaller pieces on the top. It helps keep everything drying evenly.

If the orchid has no good roots, I will often set up my pot with the lava rock and then, on top, put a little wad of NZ sphagnum moss, then set the rootless orchid on top, staking it well. The moss helps to stimulate roots and protects the orchid's new roots from the sharp edges of the rock. If there is a lack of humidity (such as in the winter), I cover the entire thing with a large, loose clear bag and put somewhere warm. I water the rock (not the moss...until there are roots) to help with humidity. When the roots have gone down into the rock and stabilized the orchid, I gently remove the moss and stakes. Warmth is a big help for encouraging new roots. I currently have a few orchids I have bought and discovered were rootless that are set up staked over red lava rock or LECA. One (an Angraecum) has just started a root and the other (a Cattleya) has a few now growing into the LECA (but still needs to be staked). It is always fun.
Good luck!

Thank you this was very informative and helpful.

[labyrinth1959]

Originally Posted by Leafmite

I have very successfully grown the big box store/grocery store Phals in lava rock. They seem to really love it. I currently have one growing in LECA. I do not use bark and rarely, rarely do I use moss with any of my orchids (it is good for rooting back bulbs or rootless seedlings).
What I do is remove all the medium, soak the orchid in water for an hour or two and all the roots that don't get plump, I remove them (usually just by pulling them off). Then, if there are still any good roots, I pot it up in dry red lava rock/LECA and wait about two days before I water.
I use basket pots, too, to help with keeping the roots happy.

With using red lava rock, I usually put the larger pieces in the bottom and middle and smaller pieces on the top. It helps keep everything drying evenly.

If the orchid has no good roots, I will often set up my pot with the lava rock and then, on top, put a little wad of NZ sphagnum moss, then set the rootless orchid on top, staking it well. The moss helps to stimulate roots and protects the orchid's new roots from the sharp edges of the rock. If there is a lack of humidity (such as in the winter), I cover the entire thing with a large, loose clear bag and put somewhere warm. I water the rock (not the moss...until there are roots) to help with humidity. When the roots have gone down into the rock and stabilized the orchid, I gently remove the moss and stakes. Warmth is a big help for encouraging new roots. I currently have a few orchids I have bought and discovered were rootless that are set up staked over red lava rock or LECA. One (an Angraecum) has just started a root and the other (a Cattleya) has a few now growing into the LECA (but still needs to be staked). It is always fun.
Good luck!

So, when you use the red lava rock, how often do you water or how do you decide when to water and how do you water, pour through, immerse and soak, or other?

[Leafmite]

I water when the rock is dry and the roots are no longer green (except for those growing tips). With the rock, you can always pull out a few pieces and check the roots (something I did often in the beginning). I usually soak the orchid as this avoids getting water on the leaves. When the roots are green, the Phal has been soaked long enough.

What normally kills noID phals is not enough air to the roots, getting water in the crown and keeping the roots too wet.

[bil]

Originally Posted by Leafmite

I water when the rock is dry and the roots are no longer green (except for those growing tips). With the rock, you can always pull out a few pieces and check the roots (something I did often in the beginning). I usually soak the orchid as this avoids getting water on the leaves. When the roots are green, the Phal has been soaked long enough.

What normally kills noID phals is not enough air to the roots, getting water in the crown and keeping the roots too wet.

I have to take issue with that. OK, no air to the roots? Yeah, that will kill it quickly.
Water in the crown? How? EVERY watering I wash the leaves with the spray and fill the crown with water just out of spite. As yet I have had no crown rot except in one orchid that got too cold, and because it was a cold area, I kept the crown DRY.

I won't water exceppt in the morning, so the crown etc can dry. If you wet it in the evening, the evaporation could chill it enough to initiate crown rot, but I just don't see wetting the crown as a cause of crown rot.

[labyrinth1959]

[QUOTE=Leafmite;757966]I water when the rock is dry and the roots are no longer green (except for those growing tips). With the rock, you can always pull out a few pieces and check the roots (something I did often in the beginning). I usually soak the orchid as this avoids getting water on the leaves. When the roots are green, the Phal has been soaked long enough.

What normally kills noID phals is not enough air to the roots, getting water in the crown and keeping the roots too wet.[/QUOTE

When I asked about watering, I was referring to situation where there are rocks at the bottom of the pot and the rest of the pot is filled with Spanish moss to support the root-less phal. Do you just soak the rocks and avoid any water on the moss? My conclusion was that you do not water the moss and the Phal uses the humidity from the rocks to grow new roots. Maybe you take the Phal out of the pot altogether and soak the roots each time you water. I'm just not sure of your method from your description. I have a Phal that I want to try this method with, but want to be sure I am doing it correctly. Thanks for your help.