Help me stop killing orchids - Orchid Board

janecat · #1 03-23-2012, 08:08 PM

Thanks in advance for your help. I am on my 4th Phal orchid now and they all die the same way. The leaf tips start to turn dark and then the entire leaf turns a light brown, gets soft and fills with this stinky liquid.

I think I follow proper care. Water 1-2 weeks with no direct sunlight. No draft and temperatures from 60-80. I may have a lighting problem?? I have a north facing window with an awning that doesn't get a terrible amount of sun. Should I still be filtering my light? In the past I have put orchids about 6-8 feet from a grow light to boost the sun exposure.

The last one I bought (1 week ago) the very tips of the leaves are turning a purplish/ brown in a vein pattern. The moss was very moist when i purchased it and I haven't watered since. One of the buds opened up but another baby one is shriveling.

I was told with this plant that I am only to water when every one of the roots turns a grey color. Is that correct?

What else can I do to not kill this beautiful orchid?

ElenaMarie · #2 03-23-2012, 08:14 PM

Hi!

Approximately where are you located? The strength of the sun plays a role in how much and what kind of sun a Phal should receive. If you have a north facing window with an awning, the plant is probably not getting enough light.

About watering. . ..well, everyone has thoughts on that. What kind of pot and what kind of medium is your phal planted in? That drives watering frequency, as does the health of the plant's roots, etc. I like my phals in bark and clear plastic pots and I water once a week. I have some in clay pots and water those twice a week because the clay dries out the bark much faster.

I don't know what to tell you about what happens to your leaves. I've never had that occur so hopefully someone more experienced than I will post about that.

I'd try putting this plant in an east-facing windowsill, making sure the leaves aren't withering at the base, and perhaps use distilled or rainwater.

Good luck! There are lots of very experienced people here who I'm sure can help you become a great orchidist!

Oh, I forgot to add, I use grow lamps to supplement for my phals, and they are within two feet of the light bulbs. Six to eight feet does the phal no good at all. Moving the plant to within a foot or two, or perhaps closer depending on what kind of lights you're using, will likely help. (nevermind, I stand corrected!)

Wjs2nd · #3 03-23-2012, 08:21 PM

The purple vein is a sign it get enough light but doesn't need more.

Your signs are from underwater. This my be due to rotted roots. Your pot looks like one in a decorative pot. That is your issue. Decorative pots almost need have drainage. Your "bud blast," is due to under watering. Take your plant out of the pot and check he roots. They need to be green/sliver and firm not mushy and brown. Make sure your pot has great drainage.

silken · #4 03-23-2012, 08:37 PM

You should try re-potting your Phals as soon as you get them. It doesn't normally affect their blooming. Often they are potted in very wet moss that is very tightly packed and the roots cannot breath or ever dry out this way. In nature Phals grow on trees with their roots exposed to air. So in a pot they need a quickly draining media with some air pockets so the roots can breath. Often the roots have already begun to rot when they come from the store, so re-potting ASAP is important. Blooms last a long time and it may be too late if you wait until they are finished blooming.

The Mutant · #5 03-23-2012, 09:06 PM

Questions; how many, if any, of these have you had together? How do you water - from above or do you dip the entire pot in a bucket or similar with water? If so, have you used the same water to all of them? How fast do they die? Weeks? Months?

The reason I'm asking is because it sounds as if could be a bacterial issue. It's just a thought I had when reading your post. I'm rather new myself to phals and all the interesting things that might go wrong with them, so don't be alarmed by my post and do as others have suggested.

Welcome to OB, by the way!

janecat · #6 03-23-2012, 10:21 PM

WOW! Thank you all so much for your comments! You guys are great! I so much want to have a green thumb!

To answer some of your questions:
-I live in NY which is zone 7a.
-My plant is in the plastic container (with good drainage) I received from the store and I place that container in a decorative pot.
-I have no option for an east facing window as I live in a small NYC apartment with only 2 north facing windows.
- The tap water is very chlorinated and contains flouride. I try I try and leave it out 24 hours so the chlorine dissipates before watering but there is nothing I can do about the flouride. Sometimes I use bottled poland spring water.

I tried re-potting the phal. There was soo much moss packed in around the roots! When I repotted I only used about half the amount of moss in the repot. Now I am afraid I didn't use enough! As you can see from the pics the pre-moss had green mossy patches. Is that normal/ healthy if that re-appears?

I trimmed a lot of the roots off with a sterile scissor but most of them were green, silver, yellow or pink. They were very very long.. some about 9 inches in length. There were a few spots of black and I cut all those roots off. Is yellow/ pink a healthy root color?

I watered the phal and the moss is wet again. If the leaves continue to turn reddish/ purple veiny what should my next step be?

Should I fertilize? I have Miracle- Gro water soluble orchid food.

janecat · #7 03-23-2012, 10:28 PM

My first orchid I watered by dunking and it died within days so I stopped that. The other 3 i've had I water from above and they usually last about 3-5 weeks before dying.

silken · #8 03-23-2012, 10:32 PM

It looks like you have quite a few good roots and did the right thing. The Phal from what I can tell looks reasonably healthy. Moss is tricky for a lot of people and less is likely better than more so some air can get to the roots. I prefer a mix of half medium bark and half moss. Just make sure it is almost dry thru to the bottom before you water again. A bit of fertilizer is fine. It's hard to tell from your photos but if its the bottom leaf turning yellow, it may just be natural dying off of an old leaf. They do that and grow new ones. Make sure to keep the center crown free of water to prevent crown rot and don't let the plant sit in water. Make sure it has drained well before you return it to the decorative container. the north window should be OK so long as there is some daylight coming thru. Otherwise you may want to add a bit of supplemental lighting. Then to make it worthwhile you might as well get a few more orchids

janecat · #9 03-23-2012, 11:02 PM

Thanks! The leaves are definitely not yellowing. Its a mix between brown and purple. If I can keep these alive I will most definitely be buying more. I will keep you posted.

silken · #10 03-24-2012, 12:31 AM

I don't know about the brown. But if its a purplish pigment to the under sides and sometimes the edges (as well as flower spike sometimes), it is common for pink and purple bloom types to have that pigmentation in their leaves. Lots of mine do. The yellow and white flowered ones have a much lighter green leaf and stem, all grown in the same area under same conditions.

I looked at the first picture again. that discoloured tip doesn't look like the purple pigment I am referring to. In the picture it looks yellowish brown like an old leaf dying back. but if it is mushy or fluid filled, I would cut it off to a healthy part and put some cinnamon on the cut edge to seal it and prevent infection. If it is sick looking, could the leaf be getting chilled or frozen from touching or being to close to the window at night? Phals like warm temps not cold temps.