Frozen Orchid

[Rhonda Svoboda]

So I ordered Slc. Coastal Sunrise 'Tropico' online and chose 2 day shipping. However, the plant didn't arive for 4 days becuase of the storm in the south- Texas, etc.
Anyway by the time it arrived it was in bad shape. I've included a picture but you may not see the damage.
So the bloom was dead, as were several rhizome's. They are mushy so obviously the water in the plant froze.

However, there are two or three new growth's that may be salvagable. So my question is should I repot and cut off the rotten parts or is it just too late to save it? I was really looking forward to this orchid and I am really sad.

[Fairorchids]

Contact the seller before you do anything else. Once you start treating/cutting/repotting the plant, that may void any warranty they extend.

[Rhonda Svoboda]

Yeah they don't refund orchids damaged during shipping. Now they're sold out. I put a claim into FedEx but I just really wanted that orchid.

[Dr. Dave 4u]

I'm sorry to hear of this. I wanted to order a few things from Kawamato in Hawaii but he recommended I wait due to the weather.
Hope it pulls through for you...best luck!!

[Fairorchids]

Originally Posted by Rhonda Svoboda

Yeah they don't refund orchids damaged during shipping. Now they're sold out. I put a claim into FedEx but I just really wanted that orchid.

I am not sure, but I might have that plant (I can check tomorrow in the greenhouse). If I have it, and it is the one I think it is, it should be large enough to divide as soon as it has bloomed (it is in high bud).

In that case, I should have 1 or 2 divisions available by April.

[Roberta]

I think your odds of saving it are very good... the hybrid is half L. anceps, with a nice dollop of S. coccinea (only 13%, but helpful to offset the warm-growers in its background) Trim off the obviously damaged, mushy parts - especially if rot got into the rhizome you want to trim back to clean tissue. Then pot it up and give a bit of love. Given the amount of L. anceps in the cross, I'd suspect that it will start new roots and new growth from the healthy pseudobulbs quite soon. (This is prime time for L. anceps to start its growth and I think very likely that it'll dominate) It got a setback but I think that it will recover, a wonderful hybrid.

[estación seca]

Don't be aggressive in cutting what you think is dead. It's fine to leave questionable parts. In my experience frozen dead parts do't put the adjacent healthy part at risk. I don't cut off anything from frozen plants for many days, until it's completely clear what is dead. I've been surprised several times by tissue I thought dead that survived.

[Roberta]

Good point... watch for rot, deal with it if it appears, no need to rush to judgement

[Leafmite]

In my opinion, it is always worth trying to save an orchid. If you can save a pseudobulb or two and keep it stable until it begins a new growth, it should recover well.

Good luck!

[Rhonda Svoboda]

Thank you all for your suggestions!!! This gives me hope that with a lot of TLC, it may survive.