HELP!!! Phalaenopsis leaves look ill.

[RosieC]

Originally Posted by cmcmonigle

I do know what healthy roots are suppose to look like and mine are not the silvery white color. They are a a medium to dark shade shade of green (definately not yellow looking) being darker towards the base of the plant with light tips and feel firm but not brown and mushy like dead ones.

Only dry roots exposed to light are a silivery green/white. Wet roots exposed to light are a bright green, roots not exposed to light can vary from vary a lot and be quite dark if stained by the medium.

Yours do look dark, but look OK to me and if they are firm they are not rotting.

I would agree with others about a much smaller pot and let it dry out between watering.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

75 F is a bit on the cool side for summertime temperatures for Phals in general.

In the tropical jungles where they come from originally, it would be anywhere around 95 F - 100 F during the summer days, and around 60 F - 65 F during the summer nights.

[silken]

It looks like you have a reasonable amount of healthy roots. They are likely just quite wet and therefor dark colour. Mine do fine in the house at mid 70 temps while they are in bloom for months. Now you just need to make sure whatever turned the leaves that colour doesn't continue. A bit of moving air from a fan might help but not lots of moving air. Just to make sure of no stale air around the plant. Good luck.

[vmax3000]

Hydrogen peroxide or a 10% household bleach solution makes for a good disinfectant.

[Oscarman]

The roots look pretty good to me. I think that in a new smaller pot with new media and a chance to recover, your plant is on its way.

[dounoharm]

if it is raining or cloudy weather the humidity can create too much moisture for a newly potted plant....i dont mess with my orchids when it is rainy...gl

[Magnus A]

I just read this thread and would like to give my opinion.

The roots: looks great if they are freshly watered. Did you three days agoe then your substrate hold way to much water. I am though a little worried by hte amount of small dirt on hte roots that indicate a soggy fine substrate, but if soo it should not give those leaf damages seen.

Leafs, The large black spot on the tip of one leaf is typicak for sunburn. And I would say that the large damaged leaf that is mushy alsa are a sunburn that has not dread out. It is not from water standing in the crown as it looks like the base of the leaf down at the stem is fine. Cut that away as close to the stem as possibly. The mushy wet part is a perfect breeding ground for rot, bacteria an fungus.

My opinion from the pictures are that the plant is damage by heat from direct sun. Both the tip and the large mushy area are what sunburn look like, though in different stage.

So the east window, is it one, two or thre layers of glas? Is it a modern energy window or older normal glas?

/Magnus

PS the dark leaf tip could also be from salt build up but I see that as less likely during the time you have had the plant.