Is my Phal salvable after losing all of its leaves to root rot?

[samikins]

I just recently became a member of this site after referring to it for many months already, so hello .

Bref description... Each Year i get a Phal for my birthday and shortly after it dies. I try everything and read everything but nothing seems to help! Last year i bought myself another Phal and it is now on the verge of dying but i think this time it's from crown rot and not to my own mistakes... I hope! :S

Last month i saw new root formation and a new stem forming along with its 6 strong and firm leaves. Although, one week later, the new root and stem formations dried up and the 3 leaves under the formations turned yellow and fell off. :O This morning, i watered my Phal the proper way before heading off for school. When i came back in the afternoon, i set up a "humidification try" after reading some blogs BUT when i accidentally jerked the pot a little, the other 3 beautiful green strong leaves fell off :'( i almost cried!!!
I still have some good roots but it is salvable with no leaves?? Is it still alive? what do i do? Is it root rot? I attached some pictures of the leaves that fell off and the "root rot" part.

Thanks for helping

[Lorraine]

If the roots are still in good condition and it looks like there are a couple leaves just below where the crown came off you might be successful in growing a keiki. Pack the hole where the leaves were with cinnamon and treat it like it is just another phal. I might suggest tipping the pot just in case some water gets into the old wound. You will know in a month or so. Phals are pretty resilient and want to survive that is why it could throw out a new growth. That said I have a 50/50 success rate for mine. You could also take it from the pot lay it on its side after treating it and lay the roots on top of spag moss and lightly around the roots. Keeping it moist is key. I never had much success with the spag in the bag routine. Hope this helps.

PS Welcome to OB

[Paul Mc]

First, hello and welcome! You are in the right place to learn and hopefully get your orchid growing going strong!

May I ask what the orchid is potted in medium and pot wise? Pictures would be helpful.

Also, you mentioned "watered the correct way" and I'm not sure what that means. What is the correct way as opposed to the incorrect way and how long have you done the incorrect way with this particular orchid, if at all?

I'm trying to figure out if something may be amiss with your growing culture and assist you with future orchid gifts.

[Paul Mc]

BTW, I've never personally had success getting roots to firm when there are none currently, which your pics suggest. I do know many people here have had success, but I am not one of them. Personally, I would say just pitch it and buy yourself a new one although honestly I never do since I want the thrill of succeeding! Just don't be too hard on yourself if you don't succeed. Just pick another and try again. Growing orchids takes patience and practice, and you may even find that this particular type of orchid won't grow well for you while other types would flourish! It's all about learning what works for you!

[samikins]

Oh thank-you for the fast replies and i'm not hard on myself i just want to have the trill myself of being able to re-bloom one of my orchids one day.

I attached some photos below of its medium at the moment.

Atmosphere: I have the orchid at about eye level and 4 feet from a tall window but it never gets direct light, more indirect. I have a fan constantly going and the temperature is always around 23 degrees. It is in a bark mixture with styrofoam balls mixed in. I mist my Phal with distilled water every morning but i never "wash the leaves" or "clean them" - with exception to watering time - because i never thought i had to. Could that be a reason?

Watering: I watered my phal every 2 weeks with a small dose (1/4 teaspoon) of a 20-20-20 fertilizer with luke warm water. I usually run it under the water for 30 secs or more for the medium to absorb and then i mix the fertilizer in with a litre of water and pour it on the plant after, and let it drain. (For this orchid, i have always been using this way.) The Phal is in a clear plastic container with holes at the bottom and then put into a ceramic pot over a humidifier tray which i just installed.

I attached pictures of the roots which you can see through the plastic container and there are visible plump roots inside ( i haven't touched them yet to see if they are soggy or firm). They are not all shrivelled. And I put cinnamon on all the "wounds" like Lorraine had said.

Thx!

Sam

[samikins]

Just to limit any more confusion ... i do mean 23 degrees Celsius and not Fahrenheit. And i take a tissue to absorb the water accumulated between the leaves after watering. But I am lost when it comes to fertilizing... when is it necessary? i'm scared not to use it.

[Lorraine]

Originally Posted by samikins

Just to limit any more confusion ... i do mean 23 degrees Celsius and not Fahrenheit. And i take a tissue to absorb the water accumulated between the leaves after watering. But I am lost when it comes to fertilizing... when is it necessary? i'm scared not to use it.

No need to be scared of fertilizing. I have 2 phals living in my bathroom year-round and they are lucky to get any fertilizer more then 3x a year. All my orchids grow outside and I always forget these guys.....but they still bloom for me . Using a weak solution is fine like you are doing. You might hold off to see what this guy wants to do. I would definitely take it out of the pot and trim off any brown dead roots. If you have some long fiber spagnum moss wet it and squeeze out the excess water and then gently wrap it through and around the roots and put back in the pot. If you do it loosely then more air can get into the pot. You can tell when it is drying out since the roots will turn back to silver and the moss is dryer. When they are green there is still enough moisture for them in the pot. I have 3 that I'm nursing back to health for a friend and looking good so far.

[samikins]

Sorry for my late response! I just finished exams! Ok thanks for the heads up i'll try to nurse it in the medium i have because i'll looked everywhere and i can't find spag anywhere other then online.

But i had another question... when i looked more at the pot i saw bugs in it. There are white visible bugs about 1 mm long but really skinny everywhere.!!! Are they killing my plant? are they harmfull? how do i get rid of them if i need to? THey like to crawl up and down the roots.

[Lorraine]

If you have critters in the medium I would take your plant out of the pot, clean off any old medium and use a mild dish washing soap with water like you do the dishes and dunk it a few times then rinse off & re-pot in new medium. That should have those guys swimming for their lives If you have other plants check the medium too. If you are using a bark mix it tends to disintegrate and attract pests after a period of time.

[samikins]

Ok, i will be sure to do that! Thanks again!