Brassia - black leaves - too dry ?

[Vespucci8]

Hello all,

I am quite good with phalaenopsis,, but oncidium types are next level...

My Brassia is starting to get black/brown leaves. I repotted the orchid recently after the flowers were spent. I gave the orchid once a week water, but I think the bark is drying out very soon.

Temprature is 66 and humidity level is 55%

Should I water the brassia more or let it rest...

Still learning everyday and this website is helping me so much. Thanks!

[rbarata]

It seems to be too dry...water it when the medium becomes slightly dry.
The leaves' color seems to be too much light, although the older leaves seem Ok.
Reduce light just a little bit but not much.

[estación seca]

Oncidium tribe plants grow better if they never become dry.

[Vespucci8]

Originally Posted by estación seca

Oncidium tribe plants grow better if they never become dry.

Okay! Unfortunaltey, the leaves are becoming more brownish... Any advice? Just let it rest and wait what's happening. I am watering it now 2 times a week...

[Orchidtinkerer]

The letting it "rest" comment is giving me a bit of concern.
Yours looks like cold damage.
Ie from resting?

Let me clarify why the rest conception is wrong. Orchids do not need a rest, giving them a rest like a bear going into hibernation is not what an orchid needs in winter.
Orchids never really rest, even in their rest period - they are always producing roots, flower buds, leaves etc. If they are not then something is wrong.
The rest happens in nature automatically but what happens in a lot of the places these orchids grow is the tree canopy drops leaves, the orchids get more sun and get WARMER in winter during the day + they get cooler at night as it is winter and less leaves are protecting them. A change does happen in nature where it gets very cold at night causing big temperature differences between day and night. That is a huge difference to giving it a "rest" if you understand. The cold and the low light hours are needed by some plants but they need to carry on growing throughout this period. They are adapted to tolerate cool nights, not cool days.

So - do not treat your orchid like a bear going into hibernation.

Treat it like a baby chicken that is freezing cold and needs a warming blanket to get it through winter.

So for orchids this means artificial light and a nice temperature above 20 degrees C in winter to keep it growing, temperatures at night can drop very low - they are not important. Low daytime temps long-term however will mean the plant will struggle to grow and get weak.

Don't let your orchid hibernate or it might just never wake up again.

and yes water it more, yours is too dry. you need to avoid excessive wetness when it is cold, cold + wet is no good but they need to get watered regularly. It's a tricky challnge sometimes.

[Roberta]

There are a few groups of orchids (like the Catasetinae) that really do want a severe drying out (with loss of leaves) for several months. However, they still want warmth and some humidity. They are the exception... I have found that even orchids with a reputation for wanting a winter period where they get little water, like some Dendrobium groups... not all, by the way... need some water in my climate. And mounted ones in those groups seem to do fine getting regular water anyway. Oncidiums, definitely, DON'T need or want that reduction of water. They need to stay damp. And Orchidtinkerer is spot-on that cold+wet is a bad combination. I water in the morning, so plants have a chance to dry out a bit before evening - especially outside where it can get quite chilly. Indoors, if warm, that's less of a consideration but even indoors it's typically cooler in the evening than during the day so morning watering is still a good practice.

[Vespucci8]

Thanks all... My first thought was I overwatered it, because I gave it already water yesterday. That's why I said 'letting it rest'. I will take your advice to water it in the morning and use luke warm water.

[claypot]

Spot on Orchidtinkerer. It is so good to see someone saying it as it is. So many people try to make an art out of growing instead of doing the natural thing. Just need to make sure the water is at room temperature in winter - I always fill my bins in the greenhouse 24 hours before needed so it reaches the same temperature os the plants before use. A cold bath is not good for anything!