Newbie with a Phal problem

[LuvPhals]

Good! Now it has to settle into it's new home. It will sulk a while and you may see a bottom leaf start to turn yellow while it adjusts. I see from your pictures what it was in. Orchid abuse! I was trying to see the crown of the plant in the picture. If that part starts turning black then you have crown rot and you would have to act quickly to remedy that if it is. Were the roots mushy in there? Give it a week and a few days to dry out some. My resuces took at least 2 months before they started to get a new tiny leaf spout. Post a picture of today's new potting!

[LuvPhals]

In looking at the one picture again as I figured out here how to make it larger, it looks like a few brown bumps on the one leaf. I don't know if that's a bug or not. I had one like that and what I did was scratch them off and then I spritzed the plant with a fine mist of rubbing alcohol to try and kill what it may be. It worked and the bumps healed on my plant. Check out those bumps because if you have a bug then you have to catch it and get it under control!

[dorkorroni]

Ok here they go...I believe the orchid, after reading LadyPhals post, has crown rot! It was all black! Here are the pictures for you guys to see and please diagnose! If its crown rot what do I do? I already repotted it and cut off the bad roots.

[dorkorroni]

Here are more pictures

[quiltergal]

Your pot is way too big for the number of roots that plant has left. I would say it should be in a 4" pot max, maybe smaller. I would also recommend cutting off both spikes to help the plant direct energy to root growth.

Crown rot happens in the very center of the plant. If it still has it's newest leaf then you don't have crown rot. What you are seeing is the old part of the plant. As a Phal sheds it's oldest lower leaves it creates that old stump. With successive repottings the plant gets repositioned in the pot and a little more of that stump gets covered by the media causing it to turn black. It's perfectly normal, and nothing to be concerned about.

[Findish]

Hi Dorkorroni and welcome!
This is my newbie story:
June 20 I was given my first orchid with two 30" spikes full of blossoms and a few buds.
I knew NOTHING about orchids.
I went online and found Orchid Board. Read a lot about the problems with sphag as a medium. My orchid, a Phal., was in wet sphag and beginning to stink. I read the s/h forum and First Ray's web site. Decided to remove my Phal. (in full bloom) from the sphag and repot into hydroton, a semi-hydroponic medium. Ray's site gives full instructions for that. I lost no blooms or buds. July 20, after most of the blooms were spent, I cut the spikes off and treated the stumps with cinnamon. Today there is a new 8" spike, a new 3 1/2 " center leaf, 3 new air roots from 3" to 9", and 5 new nubs poking out from between the leaves. The pot is a plastic deli container with 2 holes punched about an inch and a half up from the bottom.
Meanwhile, I started buying small Phals whenever they were on sale.
Rescued a few from discard piles.
I immediately repotted all into hydroton in plastic cups from Starbucks.
So I now have 12 NoID Phals.
They are all still alive.
I don't know for how long.
But it is fun.

[LuvPhals]

Hi. Quiltergal is correct. The crown is the upper part of the stump. In today's picture I am not seeing actual black on the crown part. Phals like to be a little cozy in their pot so yes a smaller pot is what's needed. When you go to a smaller pot for this rescue try to find one with holes in the side. You can be successful in that clay pot sometimes but for your little guy you need some air flow too. Think tropical so that the air gets to the roots too. After you get into a smaller airy pot you can cut the spikes down to maybe an inch above where they start and then take a little bit of kitchen cinamon and put just a little on the cut part of the spikes to seal them off. This will help put energy back into the plant. It looks like a very fine bark medium and that will hold water more than a course medium. The bigger bark will help with some air flow too. Need a pot with lots of holes in the side. If you can't find one then use a plastic one and cut the holes in the side.

[Purple_phal_gal13]

In LuvPhals above post, yes, cinamon is a natural anti-fungal. Dab that on the cut flower spikes. Your plant looked a lot like my Harlequin when I got it out of it's pot. With some TLC and a medium that'll allow air to it's roots, it should be fine.

Be sure to sanitize your cutting blade, scissors between each cut. This will help prevent the issue from becoming a bigger problem for future reference.

It boils my grits when Home Depot or Lowes sells orchids in those little glass boxes. It serves no purpose but a quick end to a beautiful plant.