New to caring for orchids and trying to save one... help?

[RosieC]

Don't remove the leaves!

These generate energy for the plant and/or store energy. If you remove them you are reducing the energy it has not increasing it. Grown leaves don't take much out of the plant.

If the leaves are wrinkled then that means their store is depleted, but the plant will drop them for it's self when it's completely done with them. Sometimes they will plump up again once it is getting enough to store back in them, sometimes they will always stay wrinkled, with Phals it depends on how bad they had got.

The brown spike now looks dead, so yes remove it.

The roots visible on the surface look dead. But don't remove them without checking if they are connected to good, or at least better roots underneath. I only cut off roots when repotting so I can see exactly what is going on.

[RoHa]

Of course you are right Rosie! The leaves are what makes the plant. Without them it cannot produce energy. Haha... forgot my science there for a moment. But hypothetically in a similar situation one could remove flowers or spikes or?

Otherwise I have repotted the Phal and trimmed away dead roots. I was right in guessing that there was only one functioning root, but to my surprise I found out that it was quite a large root. So hopefully it will be enough for the plant to pull through.

[RosieC]

I've removed flowers and spikes in this situation, yes. Some have said to me that removing fully open flowers or spike won't help much as the hard work was in growing and opening them... but it won't hurt either so I still do if a plant is struggling.

Good news on the root. It's got a good chance if it's got a decent root.

[RoHa]

Thanks a lot for the great advice Rosie! I really do hope she pulls through.

I also picked up a new Phal at the garden senter that I live next by. I had gone in last weeks to see if they had any phals that they planned on throwing out and if I could have them. One of the other people in the shop had thrown out all the ones that she had saved. But I got one.

[Island Girl]

I agree with everything that Rosie said, (& everyone else as well), and just want to welcome you aboard (a little late ) and say that your instincts are great. ....I think you may have been bitten by the orchid bug! They seem to have that effect on some of us sometimes, they even jump into our carts at the store, and follow us home!

[RoHa]

Thanks for the greeting Mary Linn.

Orchid bug you say? Haha... I was just telling my bf today that I think I might be in the process of beginning a small strange addiction. Haha...