My orchid is dying! HELP!

12 years ago

I was given this orchid a good 4 months ago and it's been doing great, until now! I've watched it get 6 new blooms and it seemed to be thriving. But a few days ago it quickly lost 2 blooms, and now it's losing another.

To tell you about my care for the orchid (please forgive neglect, it was done in ignorance): It sits about 2 ft away from a south facing window typically behind a tan colored sheer. Only since it has started wilting have I been giving it more direct sunlight. I would always water it when it felt dry. I knew not to over water it. A month or so ago it seemed as though there was less mulch amongst the roots and it wasn't holding moisture, so I added just a bit of Better-Gro orchird moss on top.

I have never replanted it. Even after reading through most of the orchid forum, I still don't know where to begin with replanting. I don't know of a good greenhouse to go to for help, I always end up at Lowes but they don't seem to know much.

Any and all advice is greatly appreciated!

http://imgur.com/6PpEq

http://imgur.com/i2yxt

http://imgur.com/HZmZd

http://imgur.com/22n1W

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Comments (6)

richardol
12 years ago
Your plant is not dying, in fact it looks extremely healthy to me. The flowers are just at the end of their life.

As for the plant itself, the way these grow is a new leaf comes from the top and a leaf dies at the bottom. It will have about the same number of leaves throughout its life. Worry if the dying leaf is not the bottom one or they are dying faster than they grow.

What is your watering schedule?

Could you pull off the extra moss for a picture without it?
RigbyGreen
Original Author
12 years ago
Thanks Richard.

The leaves on the bottom are dying, but no new leaves have sprouted at the top. I check it morning and evening and would water whenever it felt dry with a spray bottle.

Here are some pictures without the extra moss.

http://imgur.com/c8tgB
http://imgur.com/ivLaX
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Yes you can if it's a plastic pot. Get a cheap pair of wire mesh snipers from your local Home Depot and carefully snip the plastic from the bottom. You can even use a pair of garden snipers if it's small and pointed enough. I would start from the bottom large middle hole and cut towards one of the smaller holes until I reach the outside of the small holes. Then I would cut around the outside rim of the holes until I wind up with the round bottom plate of the pot. Then I would carefully trim around where the main root is located until I can free the root and the plant. It won't hurt to turn the pot sideways while you free up the root system or even expose the root system for a while. It may even be good for it in that it will allow it to dry up a bit. I do it all the time whenever I purchase a plastic potted cattleya plant from Wal-mart. A lot of those plants have roots growing through the bottom holes of the pot and stuck on the sides. Just take your time and do it carefully and diligently. I forgot to add that if it's a ceramic or clay pot, you can take a hammer and a ceramic drill, nail punch or a screw driver and carefully chip around the small hole(s) which should release the root. It may take two persons to do it, one to hold the pot and one to chisel away. Good Luck This post was edited by branmuffin on Thu, Jan 24, 13 at 15:41
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I was just having a conservative guess based on your description of the mix. Maybe the pot is too big for the plant. Perhaps you need to enlarge the drainage holes at the base of the pot. The skewer method sounds like a good idea especially if you are new to orchids. What are the temperatures and humidity readings in your kitchen and does the orchid appear tight in the pot. Is the pot sitting in a cache pot? Pulling the plant out of the pot and doing a root inspection is a last resort, have a little inspection and look at the roots growing on top of the mix and coming out of the drainage holes to see if they are alive or dead. Tell the posters here a bit more and perhaps some of the locals will be able to give you better advice. This post was edited by arthurm on Mon, Apr 29, 13 at 12:46
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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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arthurm
12 years ago
I agree with Doctor Richard, your orchid looks fine!

How long have you had the plant and what sort of growing conditions do you have?
RigbyGreen
Original Author
12 years ago
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!
kukka
12 years ago
I'm no orchid expert, but was just watching these videos and thought you might like them. You'll find the link below. The site sells orchid related stuff and has lots of info too.
Drainage holes would be good; Phalaenopsis roots rot easily if they are kept moist too long. They should be allowed to dry out between waterings.

Here is a link that might be useful: rePotme
rredbbeard
12 years ago
Cooler temperatures (less than 75*F) help to start blooming in phals, or so I'm told. When the plant is down to its last 2 flowers, clip off the flower stem, leaving the first two scales where the first 2 flowers were attached to the stem. This will tend to start more buds on the same scape. Clip the scape before the last flowers have actually died.

You have a very nice plant!

--Rr

My orchid is dying! HELP!

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richardol

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