Should I do something about this basal keiki?

[greyblackfish]

Hi new here,

I've had this phal for two months. I had a basal keiki since I got it. Now that the flowers have fallen off, the keiki has started growing new roots and a new leaf. I don't see anything new going on with the mother. I used to think the mother would be doing fine but I think that it might have had a terminal spike and it was trimmed off.

Should I leave it all the way it is and let the new roots find their way into soil and let the mother slowly make her away to the uhh rainbow planter?

[estación seca]

I would leave the basal offset attached to the parent, and leave both in the same pot. I don't see any advantage to separating them. If the larger rosette did have a terminal spike, it yet might make more basal offsets.

[greyblackfish]

New keikis would be pretty cool.

I was originally concerned that because the keiki was growing so many new roots that maybe it couldn't get enough hydration. The images I shared are older. I've got three or four new roots growing very quickly.

Thanks!!

[estación seca]

Plants that cluster from the base do so because it makes them grow better. Cutting off growths slows them down. Flowering is better from old, clumped plants.

Usually with Phals people use the term "keiki" to refer to a plantlet that forms on the flower stalk. Phals normally make new basal offsets that aren't called keikis. It's just the plant's normal growth.

[greyblackfish]

Ahh thanks for the tips. I'll take note of not calling it a keiki next time. That's what I was told by others before anyway.

[camille1585]

Most people call it a basal keiki, generally because basal offshoots are usually not normal growth for a healthy Phalaenopsis with an intact crown. The problem with calling it a keiki however is that it leads people to think they are as easily removeable as the stem based keikis, which is not the case...