Got my first Phalenopsis!

[greengarden]

Well if you don't include the half dead ones that the nursery gave me which never survived anyway :P

It's called 'Celestia', you might recall i was hunting one with the name Celeste but having a lot of trouble finding anything in Australia. well i came across this by complete accident and just had to have it! Problem is my track record with Phals is quite frankly appalling!

So what is the all time easiest way to keep a Phal happy?LOL At this stage pretty much all of my adult size orchids are outdoors but I suspect that it would be too dry here to do that with a Phal? We get some good humidity in spring(Will often sit at 90% for a week without raining) but can be quite low humidity in summer(15-20%). It is very healthy looking and has some great new root growth on it and is a good advanced size so I'd love. to have it in flower this time next year! I have a window in my study which I could put it near which gets a lot of afternoon sun and it would get plenty of light sitting on top of my fish tank i think without artificial light but the room gets quite warm in the afternoon, is that an issue or are they OK with the warmth as long as they aren't too dry?

[Wild Orchid]

Originally Posted by greengarden

Well if you don't include the half dead ones that the nursery gave me which never survived anyway :P

It's called 'Celestia', you might recall i was hunting one with the name Celeste but having a lot of trouble finding anything in Australia. well i came across this by complete accident and just had to have it! Problem is my track record with Phals is quite frankly appalling!

So what is the all time easiest way to keep a Phal happy?LOL At this stage pretty much all of my adult size orchids are outdoors but I suspect that it would be too dry here to do that with a Phal? We get some good humidity in spring(Will often sit at 90% for a week without raining) but can be quite low humidity in summer(15-20%). It is very healthy looking and has some great new root growth on it and is a good advanced size so I'd love. to have it in flower this time next year! I have a window in my study which I could put it near which gets a lot of afternoon sun and it would get plenty of light sitting on top of my fish tank i think without artificial light but the room gets quite warm in the afternoon, is that an issue or are they OK with the warmth as long as they aren't too dry?

Hello and Congrats on your new addition to the family!

Here is a helpful link. Hope you find lots of good suggestions, answers to the common questions and more!

http://www.orchidboard.com/community...ends-here.html

Lilia

[greengarden]

Well from none to five in one day I got given four more nursery rescues. These ones are in much better condition than previous rescues though and I am hopeful that this time I might have a reasonably good chance of saving them.

So my question is this: If the leaves go limp due to insufficient water, etc will they rehydrate again with proper care or should I be focusing on growing new leaves?

One is in quite good condition with nice firm leaves but just a small burn on the tip of one of them, the other three are more variable. two have a mix of firm and quite limp leaves and the third is holding it's shape but a little wrinkled all over. They all look to have really good roots but were very dry so I've flushed them with water for now and later I'll do a flush with seaweed solution. Do you think the condition warrants sphag and bag or do I stand a reasonable chance of saving them in the pots with tlc? Any other suggestions?