Monnierara millennium magic witchcraft-black spots on pseudobulbs

[CatalinaC]

Hello everyone,
Just got my orchid today, surprisingly alive after 5 days in a box, and I seems to already be in trouble.
It has two big pseudobulbs and the area between them it's black (one of them has only a small spot, but the other one seems pretty bad) - I was thinking to just let them as they are for now and keep an eye on them and, of course avoid getting them wet. Except the black spots, they look fine, plumped, so I'm not keen on cutting them.
Other than that, the pot looks very small to me ( the seller said it's flower size) and I also don't like the moss (or whatever it is) as I feel it stays too wet....I suppose I can't repot it now, isn't it?
Not sure if it makes sense what I've written...so I attached a few photos.
Please help if you have any suggestions.
Thanks.

[SouthPark]

CatC ...... black patches are not always an issue. But in general, avoiding of over-watering the media (ie. just allow the media to be lightly moist --- not soggy, overly wet) -------- and maintaining good growing temperature range, and even having some gentle air-movement in the growing area ------ can all help to prevent this kind of thing.

Also - have some treatments like agri-fos ready and waiting in the wings. And maybe even cleary's 3336.

With sphagnum moss ----- usually use a good drainage pot, with the sphagnum relatively firmly packed ----- and only put 'just enough' water into the media (eg. spray water into the media) to make the water wick around the moss ------ to get the moss damp .... lightly wet. Not overly wet. Lightly moist is good.

Some air movement (not still air environment) can help to cut down on bacterial and fungal kind of activity. And also helps with water movement.

[isurus79]

Those black spots look pretty minor to me, maybe sunburn? If they're not soft underneath, I think you'll be fine.

The pot size isn't terrible either, but you can go one size larger if you want to, but no larger than that. I'd say this is a good time to repot. Just be careful with the new roots on the new growth.

I actually wonder if that little new growth will max out at that size and just be considered an abnormally small new growth. That's somewhat common on growths started in fall.

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by CatalinaC

.I suppose I can't repot it now, isn't it.

You can actually pot or repot most kinds of orchids (including this type here) at any time. Any time. There are growers repotting around the world even right now ------ such as to unpot to check on the condition of an orchid that's having trouble (such as dehydrating leaves etc).

In your case, there doesn't appear to be any major problem for now ------ but yes, you can actually repot at any time. But we mainly repot when necessary - for some good reason ----- since some orchids that have flowers or flower spikes may lose their flowers and/or flower buds if repotted during spiking or flowering. Not all orchids. But some orchids.

[CatalinaC]

Thanks both of you...I'm feeling better now...
When I saw black spots, my first thought was black rot - I almost lost a Zygopetalum from this...it's good to know that it might not be that serious.
About watering, I've read that this type of orchid needs really a lot of water but as you said I'll just spray the moss (no soaking) just to be safe.
I thought it can be reported only when dormant, or at least it's better to do so, if it looks ok to you I'll leave it as it is unless it starts to get worse.
SouthPark - at a quick Google, the treatments you recommend are not available here, I'll try to look for something similar. Any advice on ingredients?
Thank you again.

[SouthPark]

CatC ----- most welcome.

Those kinds of treatments can often be purchased through the internet (eg. ebay). When not in a rush, it's possible to just make an order and it'll eventually arrive in the mail/post.

As for watering ------ yes, definitely - during active growth season for big plants and with lots of big leaves, those plants do require adequate water to go into them. Under those circumstances, more water can be applied.

The growers generally know just how much water should be applied, as there is certainly a limit to how much water the roots in a particular kind of media can handle.

There are terms that some people use that you'll see on the internet ------ such as 'water like crazy'. But terms like that are vague and/or meaningless. Everything is relative. Usually, it's up to the growers (that's us!) to know roughly how much water we should be putting into a media, or how much that shouldn't be put in.

There are various methods out there for growing these sorts of plants. Each one has their own bit of know-how for managing the plant.

[isurus79]

Originally Posted by CatalinaC

I thought it can be reported only when dormant, or at least it's better to do so, if it looks ok to you I'll leave it as it is unless it starts to get worse.

Its definitely best to repot when dormant or when the new growth is popping out. I don't know if that plant is actively growing. It doesn't look dormant (leaves haven't dropped) but I really don't think its adding much (if any) mass either. As I mentioned, that small new growth might be as big as it will get. That's why it might be an ok time to repot. Leaving it be is also a sound strategy too.

[CatalinaC]

Originally Posted by SouthPark

CatC ----- most welcome.

Those kinds of treatments can often be purchased through the internet (eg. ebay). When not in a rush, it's possible to just make an order and it'll eventually arrive in the mail/post.

Couldn't find them on Ebay and Amazon has restricted deliveries to essential items. I'll dig a little more, people are growing plants here too, there has to be a similar product for this market.

As for watering ------ yes, definitely - during active growth season for big plants and with lots of big leaves, those plants do require adequate water to go into them. Under those circumstances, more water can be applied.

The growers generally know just how much water should be applied, as there is certainly a limit to how much water the roots in a particular kind of media can handle.

There are terms that some people use that you'll see on the internet ------ such as 'water like crazy'. But terms like that are vague and/or meaningless. Everything is relative. Usually, it's up to the growers (that's us!) to know roughly how much water we should be putting into a media, or how much that shouldn't be put in.

There are various methods out there for growing these sorts of plants. Each one has their own bit of know-how for managing the plant.

I suppose I have to learn what my plans need.



---------- Post added at 02:17 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:15 PM ----------

Originally Posted by isurus79

Its definitely best to repot when dormant or when the new growth is popping out. I don't know if that plant is actively growing. It doesn't look dormant (leaves haven't dropped) but I really don't think its adding much (if any) mass either. As I mentioned, that small new growth might be as big as it will get. That's why it might be an ok time to repot. Leaving it be is also a sound strategy too.

The seller said it is not dormant and the moss was pretty damp when I got it, so it's stared getting water.

Thank you.

[Roberta]

A nice thing about Catasetinae is that even if they get "insults" that result in unaesthetic spots and such, they will start all over again next year... not like a scorched Cattleya leaf that may stay ugly for years.

[SouthPark]

Roberta ------ you're right haha. I left some catts out last season with some intense sun (during peak summer), and their leaves got scorched. Rather unsightly!! They're not hurt badly or anything, but some scorching. Doesn't look too nice.

What I mean about left catts out is - I sometimes shift some catts into higher brightness to sunharden a bit, or promote some flowering activity. They sometimes get too much sun!!