Help with Cattleya Seedling
 

I bought this seedling on a whim at Lowes due to the low price. I have no idea what Im doing of course. I posted about this plant when I first bought it and someone said it looked like the roots were rotting a little bit. I think I may be watering it too little now. Its throwing out new roots but the leaves look a little wrinkled. Are the wrinkled leaves a sign of to little water? I currently water my phals/dendrobiums/little seedling once every two weeks. I'm very afraid of over watering and the bamboo skewers always feel moist to me. (I think Im defective when it comes to the skewer method). So I'm erring on the side of caution. My home is at about 43-46% humidity. The plants sun in an east facing window. Anyone have any advice? Thanks

Wrinkly leaves are a sign of not enough water. Just soak when the bark just below the top layer is dry. For me, this is about once per week. Make sure you soak your phal in a sink full of water or something similar for at least 30 minutes so the bark can fully absorb the water.

I took the plant out of its little pot. Its got three new roots growing but the old roots are still damp. The bark is dry. The roots felt solid and not rotted so Im not sure why its not getting enough water.

Bulbo, sorry, this is a Cattleya type, not a Phalaenopsis, and the culture is different.

Leslie Ann, don't be over-concerned about the leaves, yes, it means the plant is getting too little water. That could be from past root rot.

The good news it that the plant is getting new roots! It is sending out those roots looking for water.

Watering a Cattleya type is a bit different from A Phalaenopsis. The bark is a good medium for a cattleya, as they like to dry a bit between watering. When you water, do so thoroughly at the sink, letting water run through the pot. Then, let the bark dry out all the way before watering again. Depending on your humidity and the amount of moisture retained in the bark, you may water twice a week, or if the air is dry, maybe three times a week.

You do not want the bark down in the pot to stay damp all the time - greatly increases the chance for more root rot.

So should I wait for the roots to dry before watering? I take a pot with no holes in it and fill it with water and let the plant soak. I do fertilize every other week. As a beginner I shouldn't have bought a seedling :roll:

Oh, BTW, for me Cattleyas grow best in Terra Cotta (unglazed red ceramic) pots. These dry faster, the roots stay healthier.

---------- Post added at 07:57 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:49 PM ----------

Regarding the drying - yes.

The way you are watering sounds fine.

Fertilizer is fine, too, just make sure it is a weak solution (I use 1/4 of the amount per gallon recommended on the label; "balanced" fertilizer, meaning the 3 numbers given on the label are close to the same, can be 20-20-20 or 8-7-5, etc.). BTW, I know one grower that has big Cattleyas that claims he only fertilizes twice a year (I fertilize mine more often, though).

I agree with Orchid Whisperer on culture for this. I myself like plastic pots but they need to have really good ventilation holes. I prefer holes in the bottom and sides. That way the bark at the bottom dries faster and is not still real wet when the top is dry. I put the skewer on my cheek to see if its wet or damp. If you use your finger to test, it may not be sensitive enough. Some people say this is not wise to touch your face as you could get a fungal or bacterial infection on your skin. So do as you see best. But the skewer method has saved a lot of my plants from root rot!

Good advice all around here. But.... no need to soak bark for more than a minute at most. Wet bark is not going to do much for your orchid except provide a good place for rot to develop. You are watering the roots, not the bark. Better a coarse media where you can water more often than a fine media where the center stays wet. Once every two weeks is too little. If you can't water more often then your media is too fine or pot too large. I'd like a couple more pics so I can see thew age and condition of the entire orchid. I can't tell if that is a new growing lead or one that has died but is still throwing out roots from the base. It looks like you have large bark. Is it large all the way through or just on the top? If the roots on the pbulb that is becoming desiccated have rotted then that is why it is shriveling. It won't grow new roots. Once pbulbs have matured, they very very seldom grow anymore roots because their task is now changed to storing nutrients for the succeeding growth. The new growth is what's important. More pics please.

Oh whoops. I thought I saw the leaves originating from a central stem. That's what happens when you watch The Conjuring and try to answer questions at the same time. Advice for watering is pretty much the same, just like what you said orchidwhisperer.

Thats the frustration for me Silken. I put it on my cheek and its still hard for me to tell. I guess Im over thinking it probably. When I saw that you replied I thought wow the famous Silken replied to my thread. :blushing: I guess lately as I'm reading through old threads Im seeing you a lot.

Hi James thanks for the reply. I am attaching more pictures. Maybe all the old roots are rotted which could be why Im having this problem? They dont feel mush or hollow to me but they could be. I can water more than every two weeks but Im just afraid of being to heavy handed with the watering. Since the skewer method isn't working for me I might start sticking my finger in the middle of my bigger plants to try and check them. This is my only cattleya. I have no more of that type of orchid.

Yikes! I've never been called famous before!! Did I used to reply to too many threads? Oh well, I am no expert, I just hate to see someone struggling because I used to have a lot of root rot problems. I still have problems of other sorts occasionally but usually not root rot. I learned that too large of pot, too damp and too cool often ends in root rot and I killed many orchids that way. I was going to ask you about the pot size of this seedling. It should be fairly small-just what the roots need for space. Otherwise it will dry out too slowly. 2 weeks sounds too long for most people but every one's situations and growing spaces are different. These orchids grow on trees and places where their roots are exposed in nature. The roots need to get nice and wet, but then dry very quickly. So however you can imitate that is what you should use for potting supplies. The skewer will feel cool if it is wet or damp. If your cheek can't feel it, try above your lip or the inside crook of your elbow or even just looking at it will tell you if it is wet. I try to put it quite far down into the near centre as that is the area that will dry the slowest. Then leave it there and put it back in the same place after you check so you aren't always stabbing roots with it. In the meantime you could lightly mist the tiny new roots that are at the top. Some seaweed or rooting hormone might help speed up the new ones (but you likely know that if you were reading my old posts :) )

I meant it as a compliment Silken :) Don't ever think you are posting to much! As Im on here reading everyday some names I've come to know. Like you and James and OrchidWhisperer. I guess y'all are all kind of orchid celebs to me when it comes to this board. I love any replies, but I thought to myself wow I've got some really knowledgeable people replying to this thread! You guys seem to know your stuff and I appreciate it! I will definitely try the skewer again.

She's good. I prefer the lift em up method for checking moisture content. But you can also get yourself a "hygrometer" to check moisture content in the media. I think that's what they're called. To use a good method, let the pot get dry. Bone dry is best. It won't hurt the plant. Pick it up and notice how light it is. Now water it under the faucet for a good minute. Let it sit in the sink and drain for a couple minutes. Lift the pot and notice how the weight has changed. Unless you have brand new bark, you should feel the difference. It is noticeable.