Howeara Lava Burst Puanani Pbulbs & Leaves Wrinkled
 

Hello and thanks in advance for any help you can give me :) I have been growing orchids for about 2 years now, and have mainly phals, paphs, and oncidiums. I've been a lurker for awhile and have found much info in this forum. I'm in PA and most are by windows and outside in summer. I do have a one shelf growlight area with a few there as I'm learning what each orchid prefers. I just purchased this Howeara Lava Burst Puanani and have noticed that the leaves and the pbulbs are quite wrinkled.

I am totally new to this orchid but did find some info online which agrees with what I was told. I just want to make sure I am understanding why the orchid looks like it does. The pbulb towards the center of the pot which does not have a bloom is the most wrinkled as are its leaves. Is this because this one has already bloomed and will eventually die off? (just a guess?) I assume it will stay where it is because the orchid needs it.

My other concern is all of the pbulbs are a bit above what looks like bark potting medium. The small ones and the many roots are actually quite a bit above it. Is this normal or should it be potted just a little deeper? I know many orchids have roots above, just wondering about this one. If it does need repotting should I do it now or wait until it finishes blooming?

My guess is it needs to soak in water for a bit but how long and how deep should the water be? Should I do this several times over a few days as needed? Should the water have anything in it? I do have 2 large oncidiums which normally I run water through for awhile until the roots turn green (do this every 3 or 4 days) but I do need to soak in plain water for awhile a few times times over the summer. I'm just not sure about this one. The average humidity in our house right now has been 55-75%. Hope the pictures are clear enough.
Thank you!

Hi there. Glad you stopped lurking. :) I bought one of these while on Kauai in December. It had been on my wishlist forever. I should have known better. It was kind of wobbly in the pot, and the mature pbulbs were wrinkled like yours. After I got it home it started to show real signs of distress. Leaves were starting to wrinkle etc. I repotted, and discovered that it had pretty advanced root rot. I've been babying it along and it sent up 2 new growths and lots of new roots. I've started to notice the old pbulbs don't feel quite so thin as they used to, but they are still wrinkled. After talking with a grower friend of mine she said she stopped ordering them because they always came with root rot.

So my recommedation would be to repot ASAP, and sacrifice the spikes if you have to. Mine is doing so well it's sending up 4 new spikes right now. That's only a 6 month wait after repotting. Not bad!

Hello and thanks for replying! :) I knew there was something I forgot to mention - it is wobbly. Sounds just like mine right now. 6 months? Amazing! The newer pbulbs have lots of nice roots but they are above the bark because the bark is so low in the pot. I just repotted in new medium orchid bark to a better height, cut off the dead roots and the blooms which are fading anyway. I'd rather have it get roots right now.

2 more questions:
Should I keep it shadier than normal until the roots start to grow or put it in a little morning sun right away?
Would misting be a good idea since it is so hot (80's) and growing roots right now? I have read that it likes to dry between waterings so I'm wondering.

Thanks again!

I didn't bother reducing the light after repotting. It seemed to actually stimulate initation of new growth. My experience with anything in the Onc. alliance is they don't like to be misted. You'll end up with little black spots on the leaves. I have been watering weekly, but will probably bump that up a little since it's now spiking.

Ok, putting it in the best place for it, no misting, and will keep an eye on it. I have a good feeling about this orchid and think I caught the problems in time :) Thanks and have a great week!

I had the same issue with mine when I got it last september, with the roots being almost completely rotted. I promptly repotted, but it broke into three small pieces, with only 2 - 3 backbulbs for each piece, I potted them all up in the same pot, and low and behold she has thrown out 4 spikes now.

Wow, there is definately hope! Seems to have a good will to live. It's good to hear :)