Den. Iki committing suicide

[Sara]

I'm so frustrated with this plant!
I've had it for over a year and a half, and no blooms. Now it it has been losing leaves randomly (right now it has quite a few yellow leaves). I'm not over watering and I have no idea as to why it's doing it.
I thik this plant is ready for the compost heap.

[quiltergal]

Sara, wasn't this the one you thought might be in bud a few weeks ago? It looked just great then. This is one that doesn't need a true winter rest. In fact if it's budding it needs feeding too.

[Sara]

I thought it was budding. But the "buds" have not changed one bit.

[kiki-do]

Hey Sara, can you send a pic through so we can see what you have going on? kiki-do

[Sara]

Here are some pics:

[Becca]

Hi Sara! When was this last repotted? I am just curious about the status of the roots? Does the 'chid always lean over like it is in the picture?

[Sara]

I have never repotted since I bought it, and yes, it does lean over like that all the time. Was talking with others in the chat room, and it's possible that it's not getting enough nutrition and may need a repotting.
Here is a quote froma member named Tobi from OrchidGeeks.com:

Your Dend. is a nigrahirsute type. It does like a short dry period during the non-growing
season and although they usually like slightly cooler temps during that time, I read from
one of the growers that this hybrid will do well in intermediate temps. As for the leaves,
it is quite normal for them to turn yellow and fall off. Several of mine are doing that
right now, especially from the older canes.

Hard to say exactly the problem is.

[Becca]

Well being that you have had it for over a year and a half, perhaps it is time to have a look at the roots, even if it is normal for this type of dendrobium to loose it's leaves from the older canes. I think I am going to start doing what Sue does, every time I get a plant, I am going to take it out of it's potting medium and put it into a potting medium I am familiar with, and then I won't have such a guessing game on how quickly the potting medium will dry out. Good luck and keep us updated!

[Neverend]

I think the medium's rotting, time to repot this guy!

[Sara]

I unpotted my den a few minutes ago, and discovered that pretty much all the roots were papery and hollow! There must of been a period of time when it was severely under watered. I think I know when it happened too. I had on my deck for a few weeks this summer and I must not have watered it enough. Fortunetly, it is growing some new roots (very tiny at the moment).
So I trimmed all the bad roots, grabed some sphag moss and bagged it.
Should I use some rooting hormone to encourage new root growth? How should I care for it now, and how long should it be in the ziplock? Thanks!