Phal has big keikei @ top of old spike ... now what?
 

Greetings! One of my Phal's got done blooming months ago and just a few weeks after cutting the spike, a baby bump popped up as well as a new leaf from the parent plant and before I knew it, leaves were sprouting from the bump! :babygirl Now, I have two leaves, each about 4 inches long, but still no indication of independent roots. I have loosely wrapped a small amount of moss around the base of the keikei (see photos) to see if this will stimulate root growth so I can clip and pot it. Am I doing this correct? Should I be doing something else? I did not want to cut the new plant off too soon and risk having it die.

Thanks!!! :waving -Devon

Congrats DevvyGirl,

Just be patient & keep the parent happy. The keiki will develop roots. When you get 3 or 4 & they reach about 3 inches, snip it an inch or so below the keiki & plant it. I have a phal that I am on the third generation of babys now from that phenomenon.

Tim Abbott

once the roots have got to about 1 1/2 -2 inches long cut it off and mount the Keikei onto a block of hardwood.....A lovely way of having a stress free Phal. No water problems, no rotted roots, no rotting leaves....because you mount them upside down.

Why you may ask that they get mounted upside down? Because in nature this is how they grow, so when it rains the leaves drain all the water out

Thank you for your prompt input. The only problem with mounting my orchids is that I live in a climate that can reach up to 110* in the summer with almost zero humidity, winters, I do not know what kind of winter we will be having until we have it. I have difficult time keeping my indoor potted orchids hydrated. I even have a Black Orchid: Vanda (Trichoglottis brachiata) that arrived mounted on a pvc stake and finally broke down to potting it in coarse medium to get it enough moisture. Wtaering at least everyday is a little high maintenance for me! LOL -Devon

Haha, how about watering around 10,000 plants twice per day everyday like i do....Thats why i got a sprinkler system. Mounting on PVC is never a good idea in the first place because it doesn't absorb the water. I myself use Teak wood for my mounts, but any hardwood will do....It tends to absorb water more.

I have almost the same temp year round but we have the humidity though.....Winter?Whats that i must have forgotten. LOL

Yeah leave the keiki on the parent until it has some good roots.

Mounting is all very well for some people and does have a lot of advantages... but it may not be practicle for some who are growing on windowledges.

They drip after watering and if I water before work I have to leave them somewhere for almost the entire day which will not matter if they drip (such as the bathroom), and that may not be the best place for light.

I found my mounted orchid very difficult during the winter for just this reason. I had it in the living room to begin with but started getting water marks on surfaces, or on the wall if I hung the mount.

Just something to think about before going down the mounting route... although I do find my mount really easy in other ways because it can be watered every day without having to think about whether it's getting too much.

haha hang it above the fish tank if you have one.....Fish are actually a noted medical fact of reducing heart problems.... since they are sooo peaceful.....except for my Giant Gourami that keep jumping out of the pond and biting dogs noses

:rofl: "uhh sorry maam, my dog bit your dog."

mounting is a good idea if you can have it outside year round, like if you lived in thailand or something

Nope, no Thailand, Far Northern California ... it was about 97* today, cool for this part of summer, my orchids are inside pets, I just have to watch if the AC kicks on a lot so they are not under a vent.

They should be more than fine at 97 to be outside soaking up that wonderful fresh air and sunshine....yes?

I've got the cool season coming up and i'm looking forward to lots and lots of growth on my Rhyncostilis seedlings

97* has been cool and I can at least do a little humidity control inside, outside, we are extremely dry. Our sun here is so scorching, I do not dare attempt putting them outside.

unless you have some shade....the plants would be better inside yes.
Since it is the rainy season here the temps have been quite cool....We got up to 96 F today.... Nice cool day to work in the nursery.
I don't even think about humidity control with the amount of plants I have..... This is their original climate anyway. Today we had low humidity at 75%

All the plants in this image are keikis. I broke the stem that was the lifeline to all of them and planted them about a week ago. I don't know if the one on the stem will make it, it has very short roots & the leaves are showing stress. I left the two flower pods because I couldn't bear to throw them away. The pot is an antique turpentine cup circa 1900 to 1920 (I'm guessing) I got near Cheifland, Fl. on a former turpentine plantation(now a cattle ranch).

Tim Abbott