Hi LostLingLing and welcome to Orchid Board.

I've created a new thread for your question as more people are likely to see it then. Asking on an old thread like this tends to get lost. Also this one relates to S/H which is a very specific growing technique, probably not what you are using.

Here's a link, to your new thread.
http://www.orchidboard.com/community...-root-rot.html

Am I also burning my roots with SOLO?
 

In reading the posts here about root rot possibly being caused by too much fertilizer, it made me think. My situation is that I recently had a Phal Keiki that I clipped off, put into S/H, and it seemed to have not missed a beat. It had large leaves and really long airal roots while on 'mom', and these I put into the S/H. I did my best to keep the two long roots out of the actual resevoir where the water is, and it looked good. I had been feeding SOLO each week, thinking that the added rooting hormone would be a plus. Well, soon enough I saw thru the glass that one or more of the roots were rotten, and the leaves looked like they were dehydrated. I pulled it out, finding the plant was really only just sitting on top of the hydroton, with NO roots at all into the medium. :roll:(The roots that were there were rotten, as I suspected) So, I 're-planted' it again after clipping off the dead roots, and tried to anchor it by burying a few of the newer shorter airal roots into the hydroton. So, that said, I have been misting the surface with a solution of SOLO, KLN, and distilled water, while weekly flushing with distilled water, and feeding with the normal solution of SOLO. My thinking is or was that if I boost the hormones and food, the keki will begin to take root. Is this my 'bad'?:roll:

Using any fertiliser too strongly could cause problems. When you are misting are you using it at the recommended dilution rate or stronger?

I am just using an eye dropper with a few drops of KLN in a spray bottle with RO water. That said, I just read a new post from someone who has orchids with NO roots,(like mine) and, like mine, the plant is just setting on the surface of the medium. Ray suggested submerging the plant with Kelpak for an hour. Should I do the same?

I'm not quite sure what you are using. Solo is Ray's own blend of Kelpmax and fertiliser. Do you add the KLN to that?

I think probably KLN added to Solo is not needed (though I don't think it will harm) as Solo contains natural rooting hormones from the seaweed.

(Note that Kelpmax is the same stuff as Kelpak, it's been re-branded Kelpmax since some of Ray's early posts because the manufacturer wants the Kelpak name for commercial growers so asked Ray to re-brand the smaller scale version for hobbiest.)

Ray's advice is usually pretty good, I've not tried this idea but could be worth a try. I'm not sure if the Solo can be used instead of Kelpmax or if you need the pure kelpmax.

Thanks Rosie for the info. And yeah, I was adding a drop or two of KLN to the weak (very weak) Solo/water in my misting bottle. Probably over kill, but all I'm getting are new air roots, nothing that is anchoring the keiki into the hydroton. I hate to lose orchids due to my screw ups.