Help with care of mini Phal with very limp lighter green leaves

[esmith1010]

Hello my name is Emily and I live in Michigan, US. I had always had the mindset that orchids were extremely hard to grow and keep alive - until I got my sister-in-law one a year-and-a-half ago for mother's day but it ended up at my house and did fine. it was one of the ones that just said to put in three ice cubes once a week and that's all that I ever did. I know much better now but it did do just fine and even produced a keiki - which at the time I had no idea what it was.

So recently I decided to start looking into them and watching YouTube videos and was amazed at what I was learning. I have now rescued quite a few and I'm slowly trying to heal them and bring them back to life. I am sticking with Phals as of right now.

I'll start with a mini Phal I recently purchase it half off from a nursery. I have removed the roots from the medium and soaked them.

I am still in the process of researching and gathering what seemed to be the best fertilizers, supplements, etc... But still not sure. There are so many orchid foods where the 3 numbers are different! Lol

Roots seem good. Was in bark. I don't know if I should repot in bark, in New Zealand Sphagnum Moss, or maybe do full or part hydro culture for a little while first. Reading and learning about the best way to do either. Any and all advice would be great. Also, is this a sign of dehydration?

Thank you so much. Stay safe and healthy!

Emily

[Ray]

Welcome, Emily.

Honestly, it doesn’t look too bad. I think you’ve done well with it so far.

Concerning how to pot it up, there are two things to consider:

1. What potting medium was it in?
2. What types of potting media will work best for the plant in your growing conditions?

As roots grow, they “tailor” themselves on a microscopic level to function optimally in that environment. Once grown, they do not change. Change the root environment by using a different medium or growing method and the plant will start to lose its old roots and will need to replace its root system. The bigger the difference between old and new conditions, the faster the existing roots will fail.

As it was in bark, which was not too badly decomposed by the looks of the roots, that is an option, but the second question is the more important one, as you don’t want to try one thing “for now” and have to change it again later, forcing the plant to have to change its root system again.

The fertilizer formula is not critical. Orchids are very slow growers. What is important is that they get fed regularly and using very dilute solutions. If you divide 7 by the %N on the fertilizer label, the result (rounded up or down for measuring convenience) is the teaspoons per gallon to use for weekly feeding.

You might find this article to be of value, and if you’re in a quandary about which way to go for potting, tell us more about your growing conditions and watering habits, and I’m sure you’ll get lots of possibilities!

[esmith1010]

First, I apologize for taking so long to reply. Second, thank you for the info.

The growing conditions are inside my house in a southern kitchen window and I am also moving some into my den which has a large north window. I will put them wherever is best though. I live in MI so going to be cold soon.

I am watering by completely soaking and then letting completely dry out - like in nature. Unless a water culture would be better.

I have watched tons of you tube videos as well and there is so much out there!

I am learning as I go and have a few orchids that need work that I rescued. I have all potting mediums ready to go except really small bark pieces. I have a bag of ODLA - Growing media, clay pellets that I purchased from IKEA. Would this be okay to use or pull out the smaller pieces from my current orchid bark bag?

I plan to order some of your kelp product today and perhaps fertilizer as well but I do have a bottle of Schultz which is 20-20-15. But I want the best for the orchids.

A LOT of info to take in and some very technical...lol. I have a few more orchids I would like to get suggestions for as well.

I don't know if I should post here or in the beginners thread. At any rate I need to put it somewhere.

[estación seca]

Welcome to the Orchid Board!

There is a long thread here about growing Phals. From the yellow left menu choose Forums, then Beginners. Near the top click on the sticky thread The Phal abuse stops here.

[Ray]

As you're in Michigan, I'm going to guess that your indoor air in winter is pretty dry, so that makes me think neither water culture nor semi-hydroponics is a particularly good idea for your phalaenopsis, as the evaporative cooling might overly chill the roots. Possibly other, "less warm blooded" orchids, but not phals unless you keep your home really warm.

If you have bark, there is no reason to grade it for size. Put some in a colander and run really hot water over it, wetting it well. Wait about 15 minutes and do so again. The hot water treatment will "open up" the structure so it will absorb water better, and once it is cool, it's ready to use.

As I said earlier, don't sweat the fertilizer. 1/4 tsp/gal of that Schultz stuff once a week is fine.

[esmith1010]

Wonderful! I will use that, pot in bark and use your kelp product when it arrives!