Never apply bleach to a living plant, whether it's the plant itself or dousing the medium in which it is growing. "Snow mold" may appear in the planting media. It's not really toxic to the plant, just a sign that the media is breaking down, or decomposing. A solution of Physan can kill mold (fungi, bacteria and other pathogens on contact, not systemically through the plant.) Use bleach and water to disinfect pots to reuse. Physan can do the same. To cleanse a plant's wound, a solution of hydrogen peroxide is safe. Whoever said to use bleach on a plant is misinformed. Bleach is neither a good form of disinfectant on media. Chlorine kills (basically anything). To salvage the plant, remove it from its pot and remove all media from the roots. Wash the plant thoroughly. You can spray a solution of Physan on the plant and its roots. When diluted (follow directions), Physan is safe on plants. Repot the plant in a clean (sterilized or new) pot with fresh media. Your choice of bark or if in clay pots, I use long strand sphagnum moss.

My wife and I ordered orchids from Houserman a year and a half ago and we were send orchids that were in very poor condition and not the sizes we ordered.Several were in such bad shape that we immediately contacted them and was told there was nothing they would do.We took all of the orchids putchased from them to the N.C.S.U Lab for testing due to the feat that they could be infected with a virus.I was contacted in a week and told that infact the orchids we delivered to them from Housermans orchids infacted tested positive for virus' and it was recomended that they all be distroyed.We had contacted them first by phone and informed them of the poor condition of the orchids they shipped us along with the fact that the 2 Angracieum Sesquipedial in spike was not shipped as ordered as was not the 3 Vanillia Planifolia or the 5 assorted Neofinetia's we had ordered.That was when we were told there was nothing they would do.After we recieved the information from the lab we contacted them again and again we were told that they were not going to do anything about refunding our money, replacing the plants and that they never shorted shipments therefore we could forget recieving the missing plants from them.We have been growing orchids in my family for 40 years and never had such a problem with a grower or fellow orchidist before and we have contacted them on several occasions since but no replies to our problem. So they have given me no choice but to let everyone know to Stay away!!!!!!!!!!!! Chris Perhaps with the word getting our Housermans will start treating customers better. Returning their calls and emails would be one place to start!

There is no set rule on when to fertilize and water. The pot type (plastic or clay), pot size, media (bark or sphagnum) make a difference as well as temperature and humidity. Pick a schedule and observe your plants. If in doubt of a plant's health, you may want to check the roots periodically. i.e. firm and green when wet is good. Generally speaking, plants may require less water and fertilizer in winter due to receiving less light. As you know, more plants are killed by too much water. A large, plastic pot with sphagnum moss will normally require less frequent watering than a smaller,clay pot with bark. If your plants are in sphagnum moss,you should water when the top feels dry and crusty. (not spongy)

Bevo- I see you sorted out how to post! Nice! You've added your lighting conditions. Thanks for the addtional info! The light information is the key to why your orchids failed. It is ultimately 99% of why orchids fail indoors. Lack of light as was suspected but not confirmed on the other thread. A 120 w equivelent (28 w actual) 1-2 feet away is underlight Bevo. It's adding 20 fc's to your your orchid. x 3 or 4 is what a standard phal will thrive in run time as you have it. The addition of supplimental light will increase the temps around the plant when used less than 1 foot away,inches are better It will take a little time to acclimate the plants to the light increase. At this time of the year you have little to no natural sunlight in z-4. The orchid gets very minimal light from the window. The "Spot Grow" is not something that I would choose for my light banks. Boiled down, it is a more expensive version of a blue tinted incandescent light bulb. It honestly would be better off as your make up lighting. The CFL light can be brought in to a foot or less. The plants are ill and the cause is unarguably underlighting. Light needs to get sorted out first and foremost, if you really want to have a shot at re-habbing these guys. Right now you are at a disadvantage. All the re-hab "techniques" are not going to help the 2 plants that are in frail condition. This is real work, re-habbing something that far gone. There is no easy way out, no short cuts, magic potions or methods, just good steady culture (care) ,light and time. Books - Read as much as you can. Taylor's Guide to Orchids is 66 little pages of exactly how to care for just about any orchid. It is one of the top "Orchid Bibles". It can be had at amazon for 2-3$, used. There are no complicated techniques in it, just good straight "How to Basic's". Ortho's All About Orchids is another. If you are interested in continuing with orchids, you will find the book an immense help in understanding the basics of orchid growing. A good foundation of solid culture and lights are the only things you are missing.:-) Temps- second most important issue. 70 is very low for an ill phal. It may be warm to some humans but not for a tropical plant. 76º-80º is what the plant will like. No lower than 65 night for an ill plant. Night temp differentials aren't really a concern until the plants have some roots. They will need consistent temps, light and some humidity. Bevo do you have a timer for your lights? The more consistent you can be, the better the orchids will respond. You honestly have little room for error at this point. You will learn regardless of outcome and that's always good thing. I had upwards of 20 phals left on my doorstep this past year, alone.(Long story) All in varying condition. Spag and bag just doesn't work unless you have the light to support it. Even then, I don't find it an effective technique, especially if you are new to orchids. There are less risky alternatives. Indoors an 85w actual cfl compact floursecent (150w equivelent) and the window would give them the light they need to recover and continue to grow and eventually bloom. (2, 42 watts would also work) . 3 or 4 times what you currently have. There are many posts about large cfl's and sources. Use the GW search engine to find them. They have been posted on the orchids board over the past few months. 1 came back to the 1st page recently. I haven't seen a photo but if you can successfully pull them out of their brush with death it will be about 2 years give or take for the orchid to have a decent bloom. Orchids will throw out a spike sometimes right before they die. Their way of trying to pass on their genetics. If that should happen, cut the spike off. It will drain the life out of the plant. It is easier said than done, but the blooms will not be great, if they actually open at all. I have not read the responses to the thread. If no one has mentioned it, Phals do not enjoy saucer methods. You might be thinking of paphs. Sick phals will die in a saucer. Pot your phals up in some very fine seedling bark, a little perlite perhaps and a light morning and afternoon mist at the media. Water well every 7 days when the light is sorted out, half that in your current situation. A Clay pot would be better than plastic, if you are underlight and an over-waterer. Mist the media daily, event drape a little plastic wrap very loosely around the top if you go unglazed ceramic. Ambient humidity with a wood stove would require a large effort on your part. The plant can live without high ambient humidity, but not without light heat and good watering skills. You have seen what lack of light and too much water has done, it would only make sense to go in the opposite direction at this point! Clara