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My dying orchid :(

16 years ago

Hey, all.

My phal is dying! The leaves are the normal green, no yellow. They're very limp and thin. So I thought, maybe a smidge more water...well, it didn't help. Its in a tiny pot, the one it came in actually. Its blooming, and the new buds all turned black and fell off before the leaves got nasty. The open flowers are still just fine! None of them have fallen off. There's NO evidence of rotten, squishy roots. I considered root rot, and it appears that isn't the issue. Or maybe it is. My orchids get all day in-direct sunlight, moderate humidity (not optimum for orchids, but its better than nothing), and pretty consistent air flow. I watered a little yesterday with non-chlorinated, room temp water. Not bottled water. I usually water every 3 to 5 days, depending on when it dries out. So, 36 hours later, the sphagnum it came potted in is still damp-ish. What should I do?

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Comments (6)

richardol
16 years ago
How do you know that root rot is not the issue? The symptoms are classic. The flowers on a dying Phal can last beyond the plant, really cut flowers, not part of a health plant.

Humidity in not a real issue around killing Phals. 3 to 5 days in sphagnum moss is probably too often for watering.
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Charm
16 years ago
All day in 'direct sun light' might be the problem too..morning sun is ok....but not in the heat of the day you may be frying it.~Charm
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Phew! It's good to hear everyone say it looks fine. But I will note, the stem itself seems to have gotten much lighter on the top half by the blooms. Is that normal when the blooms die? Also, if someone can help me to identify the exact type of orchid this is, I'd like to do more research! Like what time of year it's meant to bloom, etc. To answer your questions Arthur, I have had the plant since early February. I did note some of it's growing conditions in my first post of this thread, not sure what else to tell you except I live in central Ohio. During the cooler months, it was kept between 60-70 degrees in it's room. Now that it's warmer the window it sits next to is constantly open, so it's been between 60-90+ degrees. Yet another question: should I repot? There's no drainage in the pot it's in now, but it's never been a problem. Also, if I do repot, do I fertilize? If anyone could share their knowledge or a link to "repotting for dummies", I know my special orchid would appreciate it!
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You are not watering this baby enough. There are new buds on the inflorescences with wilted flowers. I am presuming you have roots left on the plant. I would cut off the flower stalks, dump the plant out of the ceramic pot, check the root system to see how dry it is and if all the roots are dried up and dead. Hopefully not. But if some good roots, get some potting mix for Phallys or Cattleyas and repot into a 1 gallon plastic pot (repot by holding the plant inside the pot and pouring the mix into the pot and around the roots, then tap the pot on the floor to settle the mix, do not push the mix down with your hands or a tamper as you could damage the roots), sitting the plant down inside the pot with the base of the leaves around an inch below the rim of the pot. Then water heavy and let drain thoroughly. Sit in a warm and humid spot. No drying heat on this plant as it looks exhausted already. Lift up or weigh the potted plant to get the feel of how it is when it has been watered heavily. Probably water in a couple of days. If the air is really dry and humidity is below 50% then I would water every other day as fresh mix tends not to hold much moisture until it starts to decompose. Hope this helps.
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looks like they have severe root rot. Orchids like lots of air circulation around their roots. When you watered, did you drain out the water after letting them sit for a few minutes? Or did you just pour in the 1/3 cup of water and leave it? When I water my orchid, I fill up the decorative pot with water and let it soak for about 5 minutes and then take out the plastic pot and dump out the excess water and then I let the plant drip over the sink for a minute or two. Repot it in a mix composed mostly of large chunks of bark. Just stay away from miracle gro products. Is there a plastic pot inside of your decorative pots like you see in the photo? I hope that I was helpful! Good luck! Jason
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I never spray them and the current temperature in this room is 19C and the humidity is 48%. Good signs are the new roots and the fact that the two newest leaves are undamaged. So maybe it is recovering from the shock of transplanting. If you can tell the readers here where you have the plant and the sort of temperatures that it is getting maybe they can assist. Also do you use fertiliser, Seaweed extract or fish emulsion on the orchid. Recommented temperature range is 60 to 90F + Moderate Humidity levels and bright light. Early morning sunshine might be fine in the UK.
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jodik_gw
16 years ago
My money is on root rot... that's how I killed my first Phal... over-watering. The leaves on mine displayed the exact symptom described... they were wilting, thin and then became sort of shriveled... due to the fact that there were no good roots left to feed the plant, I found out.

Phals definitely don't like to stay wet, and they don't particularly care to be in cold clay pots in winter AND be too wet, to boot! One down... ninety-nine more to go before I can call myself experienced! LOL!

I do feel bad that I killed it, though...
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pcan-z9
16 years ago
Another thing to think about is the temp around your plant. Phals can handle a little to hot far better than they handle a little to cold for a prolonged period of time. A wet phal, to cold, to long = root loss, and then comes the leaf symptoms. I think I might recheck the roots, and if they are good - I'd dry it out a little, and warm it up a bit - just to see if that helps.
Pat......
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stephanielvt
Original Author
16 years ago
I'm not super experienced. So I really appreciate the help. The orchid is in indirect sunlight, I typed that wrong. But thanks for catching that! See, I took it out of the pot last night to look at the roots, and none of them are mushy. They actually look really healthy. But, I will check the roots, try to dry it out and warm it up. Its pretty warm in my house, though. How should I try to warm it up?

Now, one more question for you. Do you think I should re-pot it in maybe some bark instead of sphagnum? If so, how do I do that? And when? Thanks!

richardol--
And so sorry for not knowing the the "classic signs" of root rot. Maybe that's why I asked in the first place.
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izzy82_myemail_com
13 years ago
Hi everyone i just recently was givein my 1st orchid its winter out and it got cold for a few mins now the flowers are drouping and dying do i pluck them off and hope new ones grow Help i have loved these flowers for years and really dont want my first one to die . Thanks
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