Dendrobium - Dead cane with roots
 

Hello everyone,

I am in need of some advice with two dendrobiums I currently have. One of my dendrobiums cane is dead but there are still some live roots, should I cut the cane and if so, will it have an affect on the roots? My other dendrobium has live roots that are surviving without canes and was wondering if it will ever grow a new cane or is it a lost cause with live roots? Please, help me with my dendrobiums.

Marcy

Pics would be a great help. Don't go hacking stuff off just yet

Here are two pictures of my dendrobium that I believe the cane is dead because it's not hard but rather soft and hollow. The one picture is of my other dendrobium with no canes but the roots very much alive but not sure it will grow new canes or not.

I'm sorry, but they both look dead. My best guess is they came with dead roots, or you watered them too much, leading to root rot.

This kind of Dendrobium has the species Dendrobium phalaenopsis in its ancestry. They are known as Dendrobium phalaenopsis or Den. phal. hybrids. Note these are not closely related to orchids in genus Phalaenopsis, the moth orchids. There are a lot of other kinds of Dendrobiums that need different care than Den phals.

Den phals like to be watered frequently, but dry out rapidly. Most people grow them in pots with large chunks of bark, that permit lots of air at the roots. They also like to be warm all year. Overwatering them, or growing them in medium that stays wet, leads to root rot, and the plants die. Also, with insufficient watering, the plants will die. The pots you have chosen are far too big for your plants and the small bark you use. Those pots will stay too wet for too long, and rot the roots.

My suggestion would be to read some more here about Dendrobium phalaenopsis hybrids, and then try again. They are easy to grow once you figure out what they want. They are frequently sold in big-box stores and markets.

There is a Search function in the top maroon menu. Search on Den. phal or Den phal or Dendrobium phalaenopsis.

Thank you so much for your input and advice, I appreciate it especially with the pots being too big for my orchids which I didn't know. I will definitely look into reading the posts on the dendrobium phalaenopsis. Funny thing you mention big box stores to buy a dendrobium phalanopsis because I bought mine at trader joe's.

What part of the country do you live in? Orchid Board members can suggest orchids Trader Joe's sells that are easier to grow in your area. I would still learn about Den phals, because they're so rewarding, and not hard to grow once you figure it out.

I live in Southern CA and actually got quite lucky finding the dendrobium phal at Trader Joe's as it was the only one of it's kind which is why I bought it. I agree that the dendrobium phal is rewarding once you get the hang of them and boy did the flowers have a beautiful and refreshing smell. I'm quite new to orchids and still figuring things out on keeping my phalaenopsis' alive lol
Quick question, how do you gauge how big of a pot you should put your orchids in to thrive best in?

It comes with experience. Most of the orchids we grow are epiphytes, meaning they grow on trees with their roots exposed to air all the time. They may be wet most of the time, but their roots are exposed to the air.

Growing them in pots is walking a fine line between water and air to the roots. People in different climates use different combinations of pot size, chunk size of the medium and watering frequency to ensure moist roots with air at the roots.

With large-chunk bark, you can water every day and still have air at the roots. The same situation occurs if you mount the orchid on a piece of wood. But this means you have to water every 1-2 days. Not everybody has time for that. So people experiment until they find a pot/ medium combination that works for them. What works well for you in southern California will not work well for me in Phoenix.

Look up one of the orchid societies near you. They are very welcoming to visitors, and they can teach you a lot.