My first Paph!

[jetflair]

I just welcomed home my first paph from Trader Joe's. It has a second bud unopened and darling foliage. Does anyone know what it might be?

Unfortunately, I fear the poor little dear may not be long for this world. I thought it looked well potted, in an air-cone pot with loose sphagnum and a bit of bark. Then I noticed the crown was buried!

I pulled away the excess moss and smelled mold Ended up pulling away all of the molding moss and bark, rinsing the plant and roots in tepid water, and repotting in semi-hydro with the somewhat rotted base well exposed. It doesn't have a ton of roots to spare, and I don't know if it'll make it. It's been more than 24 hours and that bud hasn't blasted yet, which I take as a good sign.

Any tips for me? I've only had phals so far, from what I've read these guys are similar but thirstier, and the hairs on their roots want to be handled with care? Unfortunately I had to beat them up a little to get the mold off, but I tried to rub gently.

This was a Trader Joe's purchase. They also had a named, identified catt hybrid to my astonishment, but it came with mold, rot, and scale - pass! Really hope they keep getting in some more unusual stuff. Their potting tends to be horrible, but being able to pick out a plant, in bloom, in person, cheap, is irresistible. This guy was 5.99!

[No-Pro-mwa]

I'm not sure what it is but it sure looks like it has some niveum in it. It looks healthy to me.

[Fairorchids]

I am 99.9% certain, that I know what it is. This batch started to come out of Newman's Nursery as single growth plants about 3 years ago; recently a few two growth plants have shown up, indicating that they are shipping re-bloomers, which are usually the last ones left over. I also know what the wholesale price is, which appears right for the retail price you mention.

This hybrid is ([ang-thong alba x niveum] x niveum), which makes it Paph Mystic Isle.

[jetflair]

Thank you so much, fairorchids! That does look like the one. I actually love the idea of it being an older plant even if a leftover ....more blooms for me!

No-pro - I hope you're right! The situation isn't as pretty underground, but we'll see. Still no bud blast.

[Optimist]

Nice! I have really started to love the white paphs. I sure hope you can get the roots back!

If possible talk to the manager who takes care of orchid shipments and find when they come in. I have totally realized that spending a few more dollers for fresh orchids right off the truck is well worth it. I have tried saving orchids with minimal success. Maybe one out of Ten has survived when buying those rootless down on the luck orchids. Starting with good roots is the best way to have good roots.

[lotis146]

Congrats on branching out, always an exciting adventure.

Question though, you were aware going into Paphs that their roots are not green correct? I know finding those brown roots can be scary if you're just familiar with Phals & don't know what to expect. Also when you say you scrubbed the mold off, what did you use, solution wise? I'm not really an expert here but I wonder if such scrubbing is necessary or if drenching in say Hydrogen Peroxide or some other solution is the way to go...?

Also what exactly do you mean the 'crown' was buried? I learned that the base of Paphs should be about 1/4" under the medium and not so exposed. Of course the experts here will chime in on this and I'm in no way denying the problem of mold that you had just prying a little.

[jetflair]

Pry away, I am a total novice and want to learn. I wasn't worried about the brown roots after I googled them

I just used tepid water to wash/scrub with. Should I get some peroxide?

Here are some macro photos. Do I have him planted too high?

I've been learning in phals never to bury the base of the plant, and to let some roots be exposed, if that's wrong for these guys I can add a bit more leca.

[dbarron]

I think the roots should be fully below the media. Please note, I'm a new paph grower too...so this is just an 'I think' at this stage.

[Paphluvr]

Originally Posted by dbarron

I think the roots should be fully below the media. Please note, I'm a new paph grower too...so this is just an 'I think' at this stage.

Yes, dbarron, you are correct. This plant is much too high in the mix.

[jetflair]

Okay, thanks so much for telling me! I'll go correct that now.