Strange fluid keeps pooling in the Crown of my phal..
 

So I'm sort of a beginner when it comes to orchids and I have no idea how to deal with this issue.

one of my phalss continually has water pooling in the Crown despite me not watering it. I watered the plant about four days ago and soaked up all the water in the Crown with a tissue. However since then I notice a pool of liquid continually accumulating in the Crown every few hours or so, even though I soak it up each time. My plant is planted in a mix of perlite, bark, charcoal in a plastic sleeve. I've taken it out of the decorative pot it sat in to help it air out thoroughly. The media is slightly damp underneath. So nothing unusual there...

Any ideas what could be causing this???

Are you growing indoors or outside??

Indoors, on a bright windowsill. All my phals are always indoors.

What is the viscosity of the liquid?

It appears to be tinged white and slightly gooey.

Honeydew, aka happy juice. A good thing as long as no aphids are present.

Here are some pics. Ahh so phals can excrete fluid?? Attachment 112983

I thought honeydew only came from flowers

I've never seen it collect in the crown like this, but it can be found on the tips and edges of leaves and the new growths as well.

I get some happy sap on flower spikes.

that orchid must have a good root system as well as leaves to be able to produce that much liquid.

Like Silken, I've never seen a Phal do this, and have no idea why it would, especially collecting in the crown like that.

I'd be concerned as honeydew doesn't usually collect at such a rapid rate. You might see a few droplets over the course of a day but not in a matter of hours where it fills the crown like that.

How long would you say this has been occuring? Would you say that this liquid is coming from within the crown itself? How does the crown between the 2 newest leaves look when you've removed the liquid? Is there any rot? Is there any new growth?

Sorry for all the questions, just trying to get a handle on what might be going on. :)


Judi

I've had phals for years now, and a lot of them and have seen them do odd things but I've never even heard of this. I'm super interested though. I really hope you figure it out! It's so weird to me

It makes me wonder if the crown isn't actually rotting and that is what the fluid is. All the happy sap I have seen is more clear not milky.

I agree, it sounds strange. And I get lots of drops on parts of plants, but not pools of it.

I agree with what wintergirl said, that the happy sap I've seen has always been clear

I've had a Phal with crown rot get brownish fluid in the crown ...

if it was mine id probably dump a bunch of cinnamon powder in the crown just in case its rot.

I'm pretty positive that's exactly how swamp thing was born o be careful!

Yep it's bizarre. All my other phals drain from the crown easily except this one. I can't see any signs of rot but it may well be from within. I'm going to have a closer look later and will post some pictures..

Maybe dump some hydrogen peroxide in there in case it's rot? But I agree that'it's strange, and have never seen such a thing on my Phals either.

So I've taken a closer look just now. What would symptoms of rot look like? I can't see anything to indicate it's rotting. Here are some pictures..Attachment 113088Attachment 113089Attachment 113090Attachment 113091

I don't see anything rotting that I can tell. It it still pooling large amounts of fluid? I'd like to see a picture of that if it is.

Due to the fluid build-up this is the area that would be of concern to me. It is possible you have a case of crown rot (of some sort) starting.

As Camille said, pour peroxide in the crown. It won't hurt if the tissue there is healthy and just might nip whatever is going on there in the bud.


Judi

Maybe you can position the plant so the fluid drains out. It may help prevent damage, at least it will keep the crown drier.

I think that in the pictures you posted, you would not see the rot there. The rot would show in the center where the fluid is pooling. Dry that out good and look very closely in there and see if there is any browning on leaf edges deep down inside. Also as above, some peroxide as a deterrent may help

Thanks everyone you have all been so helpful. I dry the fluid out daily and keep looking for a signs of rot in the crown but it looks clear to me. Here's another picture of the fluid that I took last night. I will dump some hydrogen peroxide in there to see if it helps.

[ATTACH]113114

And here's some from just now...Attachment 113115113116

Sorry double post

Sorry double post

http://www.orchidboard.com/community...6&d=1433806413

In this one it does look as if it is rotting inside. I think I would try sprinkling some cinnamon in there. I had one phal that was starting crown rot and I saved it by using cinnamon.

I like to use isopropyl alcohol as it dries and disinfects. I have used it to stop rot on other orchids. It does a nice job. Hydrogen peroxide that isn't fresh can become water and oxygen.

It looks to me like there used to be another leaf above that one?? And from that picture it does appear to be rotting inside.

Definitely looks like crown rot. Depending on how special the bloom is, I had one that grew a kieki from the root and now two years later, that kieki is in spike. So even tho mama may succumb to the rot, all may not be lost.

Ok I've dumped a heap of cinnamon into the crown..do i just leave it to sit?

Yep, just leave it sit and hopefully it will dry the rot out.

Thanks all you've been super helpful. I'll give you all an update in a few days!

Sooo....those of you who guessed crown rot, you were correct! Today I went to inspect the orchid and felt the top leaf was loose. I gave it the slightest pull and the whole thing snapped off revealing a black rotting crown. I threw some more cinnamon into the crown but I'm not sure what else I can do at this point. Any other words of advice?

So sorry to hear that it does indeed have crown rot as I feared. :(

At this point there isn't really much you can do, once crown rot takes hold, that's it.
The best would be to keep the crown as dry as you can. Maybe even slightly tip the pot to one side to allow water/moisture to drain more efficiently.

If the rest of the plant and roots are healthy continue watering as you normally would and if all goes well you should get a basal keiki or two. These would appear near or below where the plant meets your potting mix.

Good luck!


Judi

That's too bad, but kind of what I suspected. I agree, if roots are good, there is a chance for a basal keiki. Or, go get yourself a new one in bloom.

Thanks all. Will just wait and see if the plant has the energy to give me a little keiki. That would be kind of cool as I've never had a keiki. Stupid damn crown rot!