YAYLT (Yet Another Yellowing Leaves Thread)
 

Hi everyone,

I know that there are a ton of "yellowing leaves" threads, but looking among them I get advice ranging from "It's fine--just normal orchid behaviour" to "Oh my God, you've killed them." I was wondering if I could get a more personalized opinion.

I bought a pair of orchids from the garden store about 2 months ago, seemingly healthy. Both in bloom. After about a month, one started to see one of it's 6 leaves turn yellow and wilt. Now, I've had 3 leaves totally die, 1 currently very yellow, and one showing a hint of yellow. Most of its flowers are now open, with some of the lower ones starting to fall off.

When I bought it it's roots were wrapped in a plastic container. I cut off the container, and planted the root ball as-is firmly in store-bought bark in a larger ceramic pot with good drainage. I water them once a week with tap water that has been set out in a jug for a few days. I water from the top, but do my best to totally drench the pot when I do. I fertilize once every 2 weeks or so, although it is with a balanced fertilizer (I know I should perhaps get a higher nitrogen fertilizer.) It's been cold up here in Connecticut, so we've had the heat on with a room temp of about 68F. I'm not sure about humidity (we have baseboard, not forced air heat) but I try to leave a little water in the separate collection dish underneath the plants after watering.

The room is not too bright, but the people I've talked to thought that while the orchids may not thrive in a less bright environment, it also wouldn't kill them.

I've attached some photos of the orchid, along with a photo of the surrounding room (it's an eastern exposure). Any advice as to what is going on? Thanks!

Note: The board is giving me issues, so I'll put the photos in the next post. Thanks!

-Nikolai

Here are the photos

Hi, welcome to Orchid Board!

Phalenopsis orchids will lose old leaves from the bottom, but they usually lose one leaf as a new one grows on the top. If your plant is loosing a lot of leaves, this may be due to lack of water. This can be caused either by underwatering the plants or root rot. If the roots all rot, they can't provide the plant with water. I recommend checking the roots on those plants. If some of the roots are brown and mushy, cut the rotten roots off and repot the plant in fresh medium. If the medium is dry and the roots are mostly white and shriveled, the plants probably need more water.

i agree with lily99...from my experience most leaf loss are correlated with root health and the natural leafloss phals experience when new leaves grow....check the roots again maybe your plant has root rot

I'm going to go with what Lily says, but side more on the root rot theory. In the two pictures where the plants can really be seen, the medium looks quite wet. Phal roots need air, and need a bit of dryness between waterings; waterlogged roots do rot.

I would urge you to work on the plants and not worry about the flowers for now. Flowers take a lot of energy from the plant. I would cut them off and put them in vases, then repot the plants in fresh media. If you use a bark mix, soak it overnight before potting. While doing this, look closely at the roots, and trim off any which are unhealthy.

With proper care these plants will soon begin a new growth cycle. A good growth cycle will be followed by a flowering cycle. Thus, lose the flowers now to save the plant and bring it back for more flowers later.

i suspect that your plant is a bit on a dryer side since i've read an article about roots growing outside of the pot means they are scavenging for moisture in the atmosphere. or it can also be a bacterial / fungi growth in your medium. try misting it it does add humidity.

Re the last two posts:

The medium looks wet just because I watered it just before taking the photo. I've heard people sometime use chopsticks or bamboo skewers to gauge wetness?

As for the outside roots, those were "artistically" placed out of the root bundle before I bought the plant. Perhaps I should bury them when I re-pot?

Maybe I'll try re-potting it after the holiday as you guys have suggested. When I got the plant, the roots were all bundled tight together in the plastic container. I just plunked it down whole on a layer of bark and covered it. Should I massage the roots/spread them out at all when I re-pot?

Thanks!

-Nikolai

You said "I try to leave a little water in the separate collection dish underneath the plants after watering". Make sure that the pot is not standing in water because the roots will rot. You can add some pebbles between the pot and the dish so that the water level is beneath the pot.

Nikolai cant answer you that coz im still doing some experiement on using foam as medium for orchds and they are not potted- so far mine is doing okay. haha! no signs of root rot or pest! I always envy those people who can bloom their phal in pots!

correction using foam on phals and oncidiums, and vandas!

Nikolai,

I have found that it's best to completely remove the potting material from the root ball. There are often wads of moss and other things packed inside that cause the roots to rot. Carefully pry the roots apart so they can get lots of air circulation then repot in bark mixture. There is lots of good info in this site on how to repot.
There are always "outside roots". You can try to redirect them or let them do their thing. They usually find what they're looking for on their own no matter that you do with them.
Bamboo skewers work great to gauge the wetness but clear plastic pots are even better-you can see what's going on. You can slip them into the pretty ceramic pots for looks.

Also, you may find that the plants would like more light than they appear to be getting in the last photo.

Maureen

yellow leaves
 

I think maybe your plants aren't getting enough light to actually dry the medium before you water again. I have over 50 phals and keep them right in east and west windows. I've been doing that for over 10 years with good success and constant blooming. If you have to have them away from the direct light, get some cfl bulbs, those curly ones they sell at Home Depot and put them in a desk lamp aimed at the plant. As far as roots growing out of the medium, all my phals do that, some have roots coming out of every hole in my pots, I use the same type of pot you have in your pictures.

Hope this helps.

Cathy