Limp Leaves on Phalenopsis

[jen.kirsten]

I posted a few days ago about having to remove some tangled up yellow roots from both of my newly acquired Phals. Everything seemed to be going okay except I noticed today on the smaller plant the leaves were drooping and limply hanging over the edge of their pot. I took the clear plastic pot out of the outer pot and noticed that the roots that are left were dry. I watered like I usually do and the roots are nice and green again but this was almost 12 hours ago and the leaves still look limp and floppy. Any estimates on a recovery time? I really want this plant to do well, I picked it up at an Ikea store sitting in the windowless basement amongst some palms and cactus plants. The roots (that I could see) looked good and it had a few flowers and lots of buds but now I fear I'm in danger of losing it.

[Bill U.]

After reading your other thread, I realize that one of the likely culprits to this wilting problem is the new bard that you repotted into. When repotting into fresh bark medium, it is best to soak it before using it and then you have to monitor it more than usual because the new bark will not hold water as well as bark that is starting to break down (or is broken down already).

Also, there is a difference between watering with moss and watering with bark- with moss you can go 10+ days without watering and still maintain a healthy root system, but with bark and phals, if you are hitting 10+ days between waterings, your roots are more than likely dying for water.

Soak the limp phal in a bucket of lukewarm water (making sure that the main stalk and crown are not submerged to help prevent rot) for about an hour. Let it drain until no more water is coming from the bottom of the pot ad then place it back in your growing area. Remember to check your moisture levels DAILY until you get the hang of how to water with your new bark medium. If you haven't already, I also suggest that you put a humidity tray (can be just a plastic container with some pebbles and water) under your phals.

This should be a good starting point- keep us updated!

[jen.kirsten]

Thank you Bill! Yes, I neglected to soak the new bark (newbie mistake!) and then was worried about drowning the orchid after all the things I've read about over watering orchids. Both my Phals have humidity trays under them and I will soak the limp plant today and see how it goes. I checked this morning and the roots are white again so I'm not as fearful about drowning the plant. I also noticed that it's trying to put out a secondary spike from a node on the primary spike (new, fresh green growth sprouting up from the node, I'm assuming it's a secondary spike?) so I'm REALLY hoping this plant will pull through! Thanks again for the advice!

[Bill U.]

If this "secondary spike" is coming from the main spike from one of the nodes (the joint-looking parts on the stem) then it is a branch. Some varieties of phals love to branch, while others will rarely/never branch. I like some branches because they tend to create some dazzling displays.

Anytime! P.S. just don't forget to fertilize as well as water to help sustain those spikes!

[RosieC]

You can soak a phal for a good hour or two without worry of rot, just make sure it's fully drained afterwards. This may help as you didn't soak your bark first.

It does sound like it's drying very quickly, however limp leaves can also be due to the root loss. Keep an eye on it and maybe after a couple of soaks it should pick up. Sometimes though limp leaves don't fully recover, but they might if the problem is corrected quickly enough.

[jen.kirsten]

Hi everyone, I soaked the plant yesterday for roughly 45 minutes and let it completely drain. It got some nice filtered sunlight in the afternoon and this evening it looks a tiny bit better. This is the smaller of my two Phals who both had tangled up yellow roots that fell apart in my hands when I was looking at them so the dropping leaves are making more sense to me now. I'm sure the poor plant is under stress after all that root damage. The blooms still look lovely and the little branch from the spike is still there.

[Gazpacho]

I read an interesting article by the Brisbane Orchid Society Inc. entitled "Growing Phalaenopsis". Unfortunately, their advice seems to be that the plant lacks ventilation. So you could put the plant in a shady humid spot (a fish tank for instance, used as a sick bay, with artificially high humidity, artificial light and mechanical ventilation) and cut off the flower spikes, as the plant is sending all its nutrients into pushing up flowers.

[Gazpacho]

I found that link I read.. thought it might be of interest...
Growing Phalaenopsis