Problem with some roots turning black in S/H

[Linnie]

i've been using S/H for over six months now and had great luck.

I just discovered one Catt and one Phal that look very healthy, have great aerial roots on the Phal but I noticed one root with a dark end on both of these plants. I went ahead and unpotted to see what the problem was and discovered some healthy some mushy roots. Here are the specifics.

One is a Lanceps Ft. Caroline and I planted it in april. It looked nice and healthy but did have lots of algae on the sides. I used Physon several times to try and clean it up. Today I noticed that one of the root tips was black on the end. When I unpotted it I found many of the roots soft and mushy. See the pix.

Seeing this made me wonder about my Phal that I planted about the same time. Its a Phal Lippergrass "Krull Smith' The aerial roots on this one are incredible looking nice clean and I thought, healthy. I did notice that at the point where the plant goes into the agra, it looked dark. The Phal was not growing straight up and kept tipping itself. So I unpotted this and found a mixture of very healthy roots and mushy soft roots with some of them looking black. My camera just went on blink so can't take pix right now on that.

Does anyone have an idea what might be happening?. I am using Prime Agra and planned to change a bunch more over the prime agra but now I wonder. Why would the arial roots be so healthy and firm and the roots in the mix be all soggy??

Other question. I've went ahead and used bleach on the small plastic pot and I am soaking the prime agra in Physan and I poured a mixture of Physan over both orchid plants. Should I pitch both pots or do you think the bleach will take care of it, and what about the prime agra??

Thanks

I grow both plant outside east coast of Florida on the east side of the house in an "unscreened" porch. I'm really a newby to orchids and just give both regular city water and have just alternate between a balanced fertilzer and then bloom booster once a month. I just follow the label strength and use a little less than stated.

I have to admit I haven't been faithful about flushing everytime I water, and maybe that is the whole problem??

[cb977]

Linnie, in my experience, there's an adjustment period for the roots going into S/H. Trim away the mushy stuff and take a deep breath. I've had a few that happened to but they came back with more strength once the mush was removed and the new happy roots got a chance to grow

[gerneveyn]

I would soak the primeagra in a cup of bleach to a gallon of water like Ray says to on his site. This past spring I repotted a phal in primeagra and noticed about a month later that it's roots were rotting. My mistake I believe is that I repotted it when it didn't have new root growth. The new root growth helps them to better adjust to the primeagra, I think. After soaking the primeagra in the bleach solution and then in a superthrive solution, I replanted it in the primeagra. The sole surviving root has formed a branch, and it has new aerial roots, too. Good luck with your plant, and I hope you see new root growth soon!

[orcdfrk]

Correct me if I'm wrong but do I not see any holes in your pots? I thought there were supposed to be holes about an inch up from the bottom. Kinda hard to tell if yours have any from your pics.

[ScottMcC]

flushing every time you water is important, and I also think that good air movement is important, along with repotting at the right time (active root growth).

that said, many plants, especially cattleyas, will lose a significant number of their roots to s/h. see my threads in the advanced forum about "what really causes root death" for a longer discussion.

[Linnie]

Things always look brighter in the morning. I cleaned both of them up and they seem okay. The laliea doesn't have many roots but it has new growth . I have the primeagra soaking and will clean pot and see what happens.

The Phal really has great aerial roots and a few roots clinging to a few pieces of prime agra so I will clean pot and agra on that one too before repotting.

you probably can't see the holes in the pix because of all the algae, but they are pots for S/H that I bought from Ray.

I'll let you all know what happens. I was so dismayed last night i think I just freaked out.
Funny thing is that i had planned to take a pix of the Phal to show you all how great the roots love the PA. Hopefully will be able to do later.

Thanks for the support

[Ross]

If it makes any difference, I noticed a high degree of organic matter in the pots (algae, dirt, etc.) Even though I don't yet grow this way, I wonder if the medium is getting "plugged" with this debris? Just a thought.

[Linnie]

Yep Ross, I think that might be one of the problems. It was algae and it had really built up on the sides and bottom. It might have even clogged the wholes a bit. I will remember to flush every time I water.

Though on the Phal there wasn't the same build up. I have the Agra sitting in the bleach concentrate and hope to get it ready to repot both of them.

I think I have only one good root in the Lanceps, yet the plant itself looks good and healthy(go figure) so not sure if I should just repot or do a sprag and bag?? Any ideas folks?

The Phal has been cleaned up and is waiting to be repotted. Lots of good healthy roots on this one even after I cut the bad ones back. I could have swore I saw the beginnings of a spike on this one... at least the bump looked different than the aieral roots... Cross my fingers

[Ross]

I have more experience with Phals (translate: I have killed more) I think you have the best future with these, at least that is what I am hoping! They seem to respond best to new growth habits. At least that is my experience. As long as you don't rot the roots, Phals will grow like weeds (in my experience).

[Linnie]

That's what I LOVE about orchid growers. It's nice to hear that one can only become an "expert" by killing the requisite number of orchids. Some how it makes me feel so much better