New Phal for the home (black spot)

[milan360]

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen,

So I couldn't resist but get myself my third orchid (1st phal died, 2nd dendro doing well sprouting a new cane) which is a nice huge and beautiful Phalaenopsis with white blooms.

I was a bit hesitant given the fact I was a total noob(and still am) at taking care of orchids and let the first one die.

However, I did a careful check on the roots and leaves with this new one (plenty of fleshy green ones with 1 or 2 rotten roots. Leaves look OK to me . Nothing unusual)

I got it from Ikea as with most retailers they just squash them in sphag and a plastic pot. Some questions:

1) I know I have to repot it in charcoal (where I live humidity is high and charcoal seems to be the recommended medium), it's in bloom any issue with replanting it now?

2) The crown looks fine to me except for a small black spot at the base (attached picture) anyone able to assist?

3) Any tips other that the above which I can receive before I repot? I foresee balancing the plant might be an issue as it's huge and the spike it held by 2 metal canes clipped to it. The pot I'm gonna use is a plastic pot with holes below. Couldn't find clear pots.

Thank you and best regards,

Milan360

[bil]

Can't see anything that would bother me there.

I always pot in large chunks of bark. Never tried charcoal.

I use very wide pots, about 35 cm, but pretty shallow, ie about 10-15 cm deep. That allows the roots to breathe and spread out.

[milan360]

So I have washed and removed all Spag moss, rinsed clean and sprayed some harmless anti fungal spray on the roots. As well as trim off some of the mushy soft ones before proceeding to repot the phal.

Question 1 : I know roots which feel firm even though yellowish in colour are good roots. But what if they have breaks along the way (some even , the stringy part is visible) , do I still cut them off? I snapped a photo of examples of what I mean.

Question 2 : From the other photo, is the level of mix good enough? I've seen some repotting videos where the mix goes right to the top. I deliberately wanna leave the crown exposed so I can see the roots at least at the top.

Any advice would be most appreciated. Kindly refer to the attached pictures.

[milan360]

Here are the pictures. Apologies

[estación seca]

I usually cut broken roots at the break. I don't know how viable they are.

Many people pot Phals high in the pot like you have done, so it should be fine, so long as some roots are into the medium (or even if not many are - they root pretty well when happy.)

[milan360]

thank you estación .

[bil]

I usually leave the roots alone. There are some that say cut them off, some say unglove the dead roots, ie pull the squishy bits off, others say they benefit from the dead ones being left on.

I do know that sometimes roots I thought were dead turn out to be alive.

The general rule with a plant is to plant it at the same level it was. Over the years tho a phal grows out of the pot, and loses the bottom leaaves, so then I would pot up to the bottom leaf.

[milan360]

Thanks bil

[camille1585]

Broken roots aren't really broken, it's just the outer layer(velamen) that functions as a sponge which has cracked/broken. The true root is the thin wirey strand in the in the center, and even with a damaged velamen it can still do it's job. That's as long as the velamen has rotted.

I only cut off roots which are mushy or hollow, every thing else is good healthy roots. 'Ungloving' the dead roots, as Bil writes, is usally useful when the plant has few roots, and so no way to keep stable in it's pot. The dead ungloved roots just acts as an anchor in the pot.

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by camille1585

Broken roots aren't really broken, it's just the outer layer(velamen) that functions as a sponge which has cracked/broken. The true root is the thin wirey strand in the in the center, and even with a damaged velamen it can still do it's job. That's as long as the velamen has (not?) rotted.

.

I agree, don't cut otherwise healthy-looking roots that are cracked. The "business part" (the core) is still intact, and working. When you are working with a plant with those new roots (that may be near the top of the plant) don't be too aggressive about trying to get them under the new media- they are likely to break. They love the fresh air, and when you water, give everything a good bath until water runs through the media. Spritizing is OK to raise humidity and wet those surface roots, but it is the thorough flushing that really hydrates the roots, pulls air into the root zone, and flushes out residual salts and other crud. (Any standing water in the crown, of course, should be blotted up with a tissue so that you don't start crown rot)