Orchid police

[BillieG]

I need to turn myself into the orchid police, I have committed a crime. After killing one Vanda from under watering, I think, I have abused my second Vanda and think it's too far gone to save.

First of all, it got a fungal or bacterial infections, so per advice from the board, I sprayed it each day with listerine and hydrogen peroxide, alternating days.

It probably would have worked out, but I read somewhere about putting cinnamon on the roots as a disinfectant. Yes, you have probably guessed I put cinnamon ALL over the roots. Then, when I figured out my mistake, several days later, from reading more about cinnamon on the board, I decided to soak it for an hour while I got ready for work. Forgot to take it out and it was in there for 10 hours! The roots were gray, whatever that means.

This morning my roots look shriveled. I sprayed it with Hydrogen peroxide and I have no clue what to do with it. I fear it is in death throes. I think I know just enough about orchids to be dangerous to them. Big Sigh. I am just sick--I do so love my Pakchong.

I have had numerous ideas such as cut back most of the roots and pot in moss, plant it in bark, plant it in s/h, but since I keep making the wrong choices, I thought I should see what advice I can get from you guys.

[Pilot]

Tell me of your growing conditions and many will tell you where you can go from here.

I have several Vandas here in Colorado and not a single one of them is planted in anything but a net pot and one is planted in hydroton but in a net pot so it drains freely.

I grow mine under t5 lamps with a humidifier keeping be air between 70 and 80% depending on the temperature. To be clear I don't change the % but when the lights come on and it warms the area the relatively humidity drops.

They get a heavy misting every day and get soaked in fertilized water every other. I literally toss them in a large bucket and come back an hour later.

Every single one is spiking right now. What I tried to do was replicate their natural environment and it seems to have worked. Oh and I have fans blowing the air gently in every which way. They love a good breeze.

Hope that helps. These plants need a lot of water but don't want to ever sit in it for long.

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[tucker85]

Pilot has given you some good advice. First of all, stop putting all those home remedies on the orchid. Orchids don't get much cinnamon and Listerine in the wild. Where do you live? Are you growing it in a pot or hanging with the roots in the air? Do you grow indoors or outdoors?

[Leafmite]

The vandas should recover. One of my first orchids was a seedling vanda, a gift, and I was limited to a library book to research care which said to put it in a greenhouse in bark chips and a clay pot. It somehow survived for years with every new root dying (it didn't grow, though). :0
It recovered after I put it in large lava rock and a plastic vanda basket and now one would never guess.... I would cut off any dead roots, then fasten it into a vanda basket, either with large lava rock or without any media at all, and just be patient. New roots should grow eventually. Humidity will help keep the leaves from suffering, heat makes rooting happen faster. Good luck!!!!

---------- Post added at 11:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:46 AM ----------

Maybe if I'd had the greenhouse....

[quiltergal]

Ugh! I don't know how that cinnamon on roots recommendation ever got started. I argued against it for years without success. I finally just gave up.

Tucker is right. Unless you know exactly what is wrong with it leave it alone. At this point I would not pot it. I would figure out a way to just hang it with roots dangling. You will need to treat it like a mounted plant and soak the roots at least every other day depending on your conditions. Vandas really prefer to not being potted.

[RosieC]

I think people read about it as stopping rot, and then started suggesting it's use on rotting roots, unfortunately it dries them out too much I use it on foliage, it keeps stopping my Bulbo new growths rotting when I've left it in water too long and they are already showing bad signs... but after my first mistake using it on roots on my first orchid I've avoided it on them since.

I agree with the other advice above. Orchids can recover from this, my first one is still around.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

I think I've also addressed the whole putting cinnamon on the roots thing. I think there was a point where I also gave up on telling people not to do it.

As Rosie said, leaves, stems, and inflorescences, ok.

All over the roots, not ok.

There is a scientific explanation for this, and you should be able to pull it up from past threads on the OB. Or if you want to look it up on the web, it's there too.

If you're having trouble with Vandas, it's usually 2 things that people in general don't get right with these:

1. Lighting. Some people don't give these plants enough light. Then, in order to compensate, they go the other extreme and give it too much light.

Other people give these way too much light to start with, and then figure out that they're burning their plants, and then have to dial it down.

While it is true that many of them grow under bright light conditions, it is still indirect light. Remember, many Vandas still grow on trees. The light they receive is not full blistering sun, it is still filtered by tree branches and leaves.

I don't know how much light you're giving your Vandas, or even what kind of Vandas they are, (because if you're dealing with certain species, such as Vanda lilacina; they are not fond of growing in as bright a light as many of its kin), but you gotta figure this one out.

2. Not enough moisture.

Again, I don't know what your growing environment is like, but the sellers who sold you those Vandas grow them in very humid environments and have automated watering systems, and are therefore able to grow them in those plastic net baskets without very many problems.

You as a grower may not have the humid environment to grow them properly in a net pot. You may not even have the time to water them properly growing them in a net pot, (as you hinted to when you left your Vanda in a bucket of water for 10 hours and forgot about it), assuming you are growing them in a net pot.

Have you ever thought about growing them in a clear plastic pot? It is possible, and I've done it multiple times with a large degree of success. I've grown all of my Vandas potted for years, and they grow really well.

[WhiteRabbit]

Perhaps we need a "sticky" in one of the forums addressing why ground cinnamon should not be used on roots.

Happened to me when I was new to the board and relatively new to orchid growing. There was someone always telling people to dust roots with cinnamon! Fortunately, I only did that to one plant, and it survived. I can't imagine anyone who has actually ever done that would advise others to!

[quiltergal]

Good idea Sonya!

[Leafmite]

I used cinnamon on a rescue cattleya...definitely learned my lesson.