Buds don't open on Phalaenopsis

[silken]

It looks like the leaves are turning a bit yellow near the crown. I would guess it is collecting water there. The leaves also look a tad leathery altho hard to say for sure. This could indicate not enough moisture, either from drought or root rot.

[1dhollister]

I would say leathery would be a good description...so water the roots more, but be careful not to mist the leaves too much, so water doesn't collect in the crown? Am I understanding right?

[silken]

You are correct. The leaves shouldn't be misted heavily as water will run down into the crown and sit there and rot. I see 1 root in the photo that looks healthy. Does it have a good set of firm healthy roots that are kind of whitish with green tips? If so it may just be that they aren't taking in enough moisture to support the plant and flowers. Try getting more water to them and see if it makes a difference. If not, you may have to consider cutting off the flower stem to let the plant direct its energy at growing healthy roots and leaves. good luck with it.

[1dhollister]

First, thanks so much for taking the time to help a stranger. I really appreciate it. As far as roots, here's a pic...I don't see any green anything in root system...all whitish. They are thick, with little thin long stringers coming out of them....

[PinkCloud]

The roots look dead to me. You could try saving the plant... But I'm not sure if this one is going to pull through. Maybe you could apply some rooting hormone and use the spag & bag method. Or if you are real lucky the phal might push out a keiki..

But maybe it might be best to go and buy a new one and start over? I'm so sorry about your plant.

[BobInBonita]

Unfortunately, I agree about the roots, but have another idea before you buy a new plant. The piece of wood is beautiful, but is it driftwood? If it is, is it saltwater or freshwater. If it's saltwater, did you soak it repetitively in fresh water to get the salt out? It's hard to tell from the picture, but it might be a tad smooth for the phal to attach to.

If the wood is OK, when you get your next orchid, you could try mounting more sideways, so water drains freely. There are quite a few threads here on the web, complete with pics of phals growing in the wild.

When you pick out your next orchid, look for one that is growing in bark. It will be a less drastic transition for it to go to a mount than it is for an orchid growing in sphagnum. The sphagnum is pretty common in big box stores and is a more water retentive medium. It's pretty common to get some root loss when you change medium, but a big change makes it more pronounced. Also, look at the roots before you buy it (pull it out of the pot). A surprising number of orchids have root rot at the store. You can also tie a bit of sphagnum under the roots to both aid in the transition and to keep them a little wetter until they grow onto the mount.

Make sure you check out the threads on mounting. There is a wealth of info that's better to have before a problem.

Good luck, and let us know what happens.

[1dhollister]

Thanks for the info - the wood is ghostwood - whatever that means - my brother helped put together the viv with his knowledge - I have none. I'll ask him about the salt, but he's pretty up on things like that...

[RosieC]

I'm late to this one, but I agree with the comments above.

Once you've checked about the salt, the other main thing I think is to ensure you get enough water to the roots. In the wild water runs down the trees and over the roots, it's not just a fine mist, but quite a lot of water.

With my mounted orchids I soak the entire mount daily (they are small mounts I can put in the sink). In your case I think you would need to spray the root area well, until the roots turn green, every day.

People often mount Phals upside down, or sticking out sideways. This is closer to how they grow in the wild and stops water collecting in the crown, which as others have said can cause rot.

I'm afraid I agree with others though that you will probably have problems rescuing this particular Phal.

[Orchid126]

Misting several times a day sounds excessive, especially for a vivarium. Stop misting. If you get any water in the crook of the leaves, mop it up with a tissue. The bumpy leaves may be from too much moisture. Get a small fan and try to get some air circulation to the plant.

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[1dhollister]

thank you all for your input, I think I am losing this one...but the advice will definitely come in handy in the future..I love orchids and am excited to get one I can have some success with...oh, and I do have a fan in there for circulation..