Thank you! I think you guys have solved it. We live in Montana and the plant sits near a window to get the best light. It must be too chilly there. We'll move it ASAP. Cody, do you know how much water to use? The directions said 3 ice cubs and I know that's not much water, but...I'm obviously afraid of overwatering.

Sean, a belated welcome, A couple of my earlier messages to you haven't posted here. You have my sympathy and empathy with your orchid loss, especially because it was a thoughtful and special gift for your GF, and she's loved it so. You've gone to great lengths to save this plant. Not many folks would have done that. Kudos to you. Dunno if this will help ease the loss for the two of you, but the beloved Phal could have been doomed before you got it because of the no drainage factor. The only retailers who raise orchids to last beyond that one (unnatural) flowering are the smaller commercial orchid growers, and some of those mistreat their plants, so you end up with poor quality too. You're in good company: virtually every orchid hobbyist lost at least a few of their first orchids. After you and your GF have had a chance to talk, & if you decide to get another orchid, I have two suggestions that will increase chances the new orchid will thrive and bloom again (no guarantees, unfortunately - we're talking orchids. :)). First, as Jane said, get Ortho's All About Orchids by Elvin McDonald; Meredith Books, 1999. It's a paperback, and Amazon's got them new for $2.79! Then there's shipping from their vendor, but the book was about $20 @ Home Depot a couple of years ago. The Ortho book's only 96 pages long and has guided tons of folks to success. After the two of you have skimmed through the book... Second suggestion - order a Phal from a grower who sells online. Picking out the new Phal together could help brighten your moods. There are lots of good growers who sell online, and folks here will suggest solid growers, if you decide to go that route. We can also tell you which Phals might be easier than others. One drawback is a new plant may not arrive in spike (have a "stem" maybe long enough to have buds on it already), or in bloom (flowers open). That's because the orchid's environment hasn't been messed with to force it to bloom way out of its natural cycle, like orchids you find in stores, even garden centers. This process could have compromised your orchid's health, too. But, you're in luck - this is the time of year lots of Phals are in spike. I live in Minneapolis, MN and see you're in SE Nebraska. We're geographically challenged in the orchid world. There may be small commercial growers kinda near you or your GF's school, but none that sell online as far as I know. Also, the only show around here where you can buy orchids is in conjunction with the St. Paul Winter Carnival in January, and only a few vendors attend. It's the absolute worst time to buy an orchid cuz of its exposure to cold temps. People in Chicago, S CA, FL, and farther up the E coast live in paradise re: lots of good growers and big shows throughout the year. I'll be thinking about you two. Please let us know how it's going. Whitecat8 Here is a link that might be useful: Ortho's All About Orchids, Amazon.com

Whitney Spears, Yep, suspect your little plant has a pretty severe case of sunburn. See those papery looking areas in the center of the leaves surrounded by darker green around the border? The silvery areas are burned, and will probably become sunken and turn leathery and black...the spots are probably already beginning that process. Watch the spots for a fungal outbreak, and if one occurs, cut the bad area out with a sterile razor blade and apply fungicide. Let the sunburn areas finish drying up and turning black before you cut them off. Don't cut any more than necessary, but for appearance sake more than anything, you can cut them back to good green tissue, put a fungicide on the cuts, and treat the plant as normal. The plant will eventually grow new leaves, and when you have several new leaves you can remove the old cut leaves if you desire. The roots look good, so I suspect you will have no problem saving the plant. Don't repot it while it is distressed, so be careful about watering until its back on its feet...... The little bugs.....I say no problem, but my wife has a decidedly different opinion!!!!! If yours are like mine, they come in on the plants in the fall, and reside throughout the winter, and go back out in the spring with the plants. They are like little gnats....they hatch in the potting media, and fly.....all over the house they appear.....Wife thinks company won't understand......I say most company doesn't understand a plant freak (me) anyway, so don't worry about it..... Anyway, I keep a can of cheap bug spray near the plants, and when the little critters get particularly bad, I point a spray of insecticide at the potting media. Hope that helps some. Bill

Whoa, are you serious? That's insane! I never actually thought about a Phal having a 'variegated leaf.' Thanks so much for helping, I had thought it was some kind of disease. (Guess what, she knows nothing about plants, and actually got it from a Grocery Store that has very little plant knowledge.)