Shriveling root tips

[m.dlny]

Greetings, dear fellow orchid lovers,

Frankly, I write in despair - it seems any magic touch I had for my plants is gone and I am at a loss what to do.

I have a strange thing happening to my orchids (phals, epidendrums, oncidium, cymbidium) - the tips of the roots either brown off or brown off and shrivel. Below are the photos of what it looks like.

It does not happen to all roots of a plant at once - there will be perfectly healthy roots in the pot alongside shriveling ones. It happens to aerial roots as well as the ones inside the pot.

The rest of the root remains perfectly fine, there is nothing of concern on the bulbs, stems or leaves. Such shriveled roots will happily grow new root tips and branch out.

I first noticed this problem last year. At times there were just a few roots with this problem, and I thought it was going away. But then it would come back and sometimes with large numbers of roots being affected. I have not been able to tie it to any changes in the care routine.

I first thought it was because it was too dry, but watering more did not get rid of the issue. Then I thought it might have been a reaction to KelpMax or fertilizers (although I always applied very small concentrations). About two months ago I stopped using any substances. Nothing has changed - the tips continue to shrivel.

Brief chronology of my plant care:

Last year I kept my plants too wet (I had them in double pots, the bark was packed too tightly and remained wet for a long time) - got some root rot and average growth.

I increased breaks between waterings and let the plants dry out really hard in between - roots grew better, but leaves grew very small (tiny in some cases).

I made the substrate a bit more airy by taking out some bark and went back to watering often liberally - the plants got springtails, soppy roots and mediocre growth.

For the last three weeks I have stopped soaking plants and took them out of double pots. Now I moderately shower them from a hose two-three times with 10 minute intervals letting water run through the bark. All roots become wet.

On average, phal roots are dry in 1-2 days with bark being almost dry in 4-5 days. Thin roots of epidendrums, dendrobiums, oncidiums dry out in about 1-1,5 days, with moisture completely gone out of their substrate in about 3 days.

My conditions:

- Not sure of water hardness and mineral content.
- Average humidity for may is about 70-75%
- The plants are located in a easterly - south-easterly window (about 115 degrees SE, to be precise)

I initially thought it was an issue related to a dryness-wetness imbalance. However, since the same thing happens to aerial roots as well as those inside the pot I wonder if it is not a fungal issue of some sort?

Since I am at a complete loss, I will appreciate any input from the community.

Thank you!

UPD: It has been almost a month since my original post (LOL - I feel like a castaway on an uninhabited island writing a diary). My plants are doing much better at the moment.

Having studied some information about fungal afflictions in orchids, I thought it might have been the cause - simply because the problem presented itself in various parts of a plant, without any specific pattern. After two treatments with Benomyl, changing from soaking to letting water run through the medium and increased drying out time, the problem has completely disappeared.

Once I thought all was well, I resumed KelpMax use and fertilizer. After the KelpMax application, one of the plants got a few of such shriveling, browning roots, but it did not seem to go further.

I am not sure why the problem manifested itself more vividly with the use of KelpMax - I believe it is a wonderful product, and all my research points to its many benefits for the plants. Perhaps, it was a freak coincidence - some conflict interaction between fungus and kelp extract (I have used mycorrhizae and trichoderma before)?

For now I continue to observe and am very mindful of not over watering. Hopefully, no orchid grower will ever have to make use of the information in this topic ))))))))

[Ray]

One of the first things I’d look at, if for no other reason than to rule it out, would be water quality, but the fact that it happens to some roots, but no others is curious.

I do know that if a root tip comes in contact with something that desiccates it, it may die back like that. I’ve mostly seen that happen when a plant is potted in dry LECA, but it can occur with other materials, as well.

Also, if the tip sustained even a tiny bit of damage during repotting, that could set it back, too.

[estación seca]

I'm wondering about bush snails, or some other pest that is nibbling them.

Bush snails are tiny. They love to eat root tips.

[m.dlny]

Originally Posted by Ray

One of the first things I’d look at, if for no other reason than to rule it out, would be water quality, but the fact that it happens to some roots, but no others is curious.

I do know that if a root tip comes in contact with something that desiccates it, it may die back like that. I’ve mostly seen that happen when a plant is potted in dry LECA, but it can occur with other materials, as well.

Also, if the tip sustained even a tiny bit of damage during repotting, that could set it back, too.

Ray, thank you for your input. I feel a bit better knowing that I am not the only one stumped by this ))))

This started happening when roots were not touched or moved in any way (repotting) and they grow in regular bark.

I will contact local authorities to see what I can find out about water as I do not have many more options to look at.

---------- Post added at 01:36 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:33 PM ----------

Originally Posted by estación seca

I'm wondering about bush snails, or some other pest that is nibbling them.

Dear estación seca, thank you for your participation. I have had snail damage on orchids before and it looked quite different to whatever is happening now. I also have not seen any other evidence of snails (normally there are trails or eggs), but it does not mean it is not a pest of some sort. I will continue my research ))

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by m.dlny

Dear estación seca, thank you for your participation. I have had snail damage on orchids before and it looked quite different to whatever is happening now. I also have not seen any other evidence of snails (normally there are trails or eggs), but it does not mean it is not a pest of some sort. I will continue my research ))

Bush snails are different than "regular" snails. They live down in the pot, don't leave trails (and also are not attracted to the baits that are used on their bigger cousins) I knew an elderly hobbyist who claimed that there are two kinds of orchid growers, those with bush snails and those who need new glasses. (But he grew in a greenhouse, so anything in one pot eventually ended up in the rest... I get a few but it's not such a big problem in my outdoor area) But they are tiny - like 1/4 to 1/2 centimeter or even less. So don't rule those out just because you haven't seen them yet. Sometimes they come to the surface when a plant is watered well, but not always.(Look like tiny flying saucers) Several people on the Board have had good luck against them with coffee.

[SouthPark]

m.dl ------ how long roughly have those orchids been growing in that particular growing area? Eg. ..... several years?

You mention 'window' - which suggests an indoor environment. But in any case - whether outdoor or indoor, consider the usual - temperature, lighting levels and duration, humidity, air-flow etc. The 70-75% humidity level you have is satisfactory!

If the orchids have been growing in there for years, then might need to check on water quality - even though it seems that some roots don't get affected, while all roots on some other plants are completely affected.

Also - for some orchids ----- check to see what's going on within the depths of the media ----- the regions where our eyes can't look into. This may involve unpotting ----- just to make sure the roots etc are all ok toward the central region of the pot ---- as in nothing bad happening in regions that aren't visible to us.

I think that at least some growers will mention that double-pots work nicely for them indefinitely. But under certain conditions - that configuration could introduces issues for orchids. So that was likely a good call in this case to not use double-pots ----- at least until the source(s) of the issue becomes revealed.

[m.dlny]

Originally Posted by Roberta

Bush snails are different than "regular" snails. They live down in the pot, don't leave trails (and also are not attracted to the baits that are used on their bigger cousins) I knew an elderly hobbyist who claimed that there are two kinds of orchid growers, those with bush snails and those who need new glasses. (But he grew in a greenhouse, so anything in one pot eventually ended up in the rest... I get a few but it's not such a big problem in my outdoor area) But they are tiny - like 1/4 to 1/2 centimeter or even less. So don't rule those out just because you haven't seen them yet. Sometimes they come to the surface when a plant is watered well, but not always.(Look like tiny flying saucers) Several people on the Board have had good luck against them with coffee.

Dear Roberta,

Thank you for your post - I learned something from it ))) Because I am having this issue and because I recently had springtails, I've been keeping a very close eye on the pots - but it is possible I have missed something so small! I will do more research and perhaps try the coffee treatment (I've also heard it works for snails!).

---------- Post added at 04:05 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:59 AM ----------

Originally Posted by SouthPark

m.dl ------ how long roughly have those orchids been growing in that particular growing area? Eg. ..... several years?

You mention 'window' - which suggests an indoor environment. But in any case - whether outdoor or indoor, consider the usual - temperature, lighting levels and duration, humidity, air-flow etc. The 70-75% humidity level you have is satisfactory!

If the orchids have been growing in there for years, then might need to check on water quality - even though it seems that some roots don't get affected, while all roots on some other plants are completely affected.

Also - for some orchids ----- check to see what's going on within the depths of the media ----- the regions where our eyes can't look into. This may involve unpotting ----- just to make sure the roots etc are all ok toward the central region of the pot ---- as in nothing bad happening in regions that aren't visible to us.

I think that at least some growers will mention that double-pots work nicely for them indefinitely. But under certain conditions - that configuration could introduces issues for orchids. So that was likely a good call in this case to not use double-pots ----- at least until the source(s) of the issue becomes revealed.

Dear South Park,

I was glad to read your thoughts on the matter.

The plants are kept indoors, but I take them to the outside courtyard to water - so they are semi-indoor plants, I would say )))

When I had the springtail problem, I basically checked the inside of all pots - in some cases by shaking everything out, in others by simply taking out the top layer of the bark without disturbing the roots. It seems, there is nothing terrible going on inside (like rot).

I have been in the current area for about a year, and we've had quite a lot of problems in the garden as well (things mysteriously dying back, lots of pests, etc). So, thinking about it, perhaps, the issue is not with the water, but with the environment itself - if there is something (like fungal) floating around, it affects orchids as well?

And I think you are correct about the double pot - the plants somehow just "feel" happier ))