Purple Cymbidium Leaves
 

Help, I repotted a cymbidium and about 2 days later it’s leaves turned purple over night. It was a quick and dramatic change. I thought I was going to separate the 3 bulbs but they didn’t seem ready.

I watered it quick a bit with the hose for about two days. Could it be sunburn? My other cymbidium is fine in the San Francisco sun. I repotted it in half orchid mix, half orchid bark.

What does everyone think?!? Help and thank you!

NJ ...... something serious/major is going on there. It could well be sunburn. Was this orchid growing in the same sunny location before the potting?

Just put it in the shade for now, right away. Normally, for sunburn, the leaves will start to get quite yellow first - and become scorched, and then become black coloured.

Well i got it from a neighbor so I’m not sure how much sun it got.

Thanks NJ. Assuming here that the state fo the roots are good - and not soggy wet, and the media is not soggy wet --------- put the cymbidium in some shade for now, just in case. Cymbidium can generally handle lots of sun - but if it's not sun-hardened to begin with (ie. gradual changes to higher and higher light levels over time), then burning can happen for sure. This could well be leaf burn here. That can happen if the orchid isn't yet sun-hardened.

Thanks SouthPark, I was afraid it was over-watering or maybe some sort of reporting trauma. It was VERY sunny yesterday in SF. I actually got sunburned which rarely happens.

NJ ..... most welcome! I have seen cattleya leaves go black pretty much as quickly as you saw too. It can happen real fast. That's cattleya leaves that haven't been sunhardened adequately, or even on the most intense of summer days. Certain times of the year can have quite intense sunlight coming down.

So you think that it is a cattleya?

NJ ----- what I meant was ----- in the same way and speed ---- abrupt blackening of the leaves of your cymbidium, I have seen the same abrupt blackening of leaves of cattleya - caused by intense sun. It can happen fast.

That's sunburn of leaves likely grown in deep shade. Don't worry too much; if the plant has good pseudobulbs and roots, it will very soon make more growths, adapted to its current light situation.

Three pseudobulbs are too small to separate unless you are desperate to propagate the plant, or you want prevent flowering for 2-3 years. Most people try to divide into clumps of at least 3 newer healthy pseudobulbs, usually more.

So then these are too small, huh?