Perhaps you should try using Lava Rock or Basalt Chips and also make the drainage holes in the pots larger. See if you can find some culture notes written for the Philippines.

Recommended daily temperature range is 20 to 30C.

what Arthur says and clay pots help too.

Shavedmonkey, thanks. :)

mind if I use wood charcoal? Is it okay? For my young phal?

Arthum2015, those lava rocks and basalt chips I already viewed on google, can I just collect some of those on the seaside? Thank you so much for your comments and giving me some ideas. :)

Can you give me an idea if what size of these will I collect? Thank you so much!

Here is a pic. taken in Vietnam. Might help because I imagine the climate might be similar, unfortunately i do not know what sort of potting material is in the pots.

Phalaenopsis photograph taken in Vietnam

Thanks, I'll check it out. Btw the temp. here is 80-90℉ in daytime and 70-80℉ at night.

I think its coco husk, but is it okay to use those media that you recommend me in this type of climate?

Since my phal is still young, can i use pure spag moss?

The general rule is the more tropical the climate, the more arid the mix. Charcoal is fine. You have to develop the optimum recipe for your conditions. Perhaps mostly Charcoal +Lava Rock or basalt with maybe just a bit of coco husk.

Hunt around and see if you can find out what the locals use.

Hmmm... so I must choose a media that can hold moist in very warm climate like moss? Since my phal is still young, and btw is it possible to bloom in that young stage?

I don't think so that coco husk is effective, but I'll try charcoal+basalt chips in a 6" clear plastic pot. What size of basalt chips and charcoal will it fit in the pot? Does it need to be filled up w/ media and leave no space inside the pot? I'll be finalizing the repotting so that i can save my young phal.

Moss holds the most water. Lava the least. Lava is best. moss is worst for you and your phal. It is not young. Cut several vertical slots on the pot for good drainage. If the medium comes from the ocean the salt could be a problem. Perhaps a long soak might help but it is better if you can get something nor exposed to salt water.

To me it looks like it was improperly watered to begin with no matter what the media is it's in..

I always soak mine in a bucket of fresh water for at least 5 minutes until the roots hydrate..At some point you need to make sure what ever roots that are alive get hydrated to a nice green and cut off all the dried out dead ones..It should come back if you use a medium that does not stay wet too long but allows the roots enough time to drink..

In your humid climate I know some that use just plain ole small rocks and the roots climb all over them if watered correctly..)

Oh, thank you shavedmonkey! :) so therefore this phal is possible to bloom in the next season if properly care? Well, Ill try to find some pine barks then I'll just cut those into pieces there are lots of big pines here I hope I can find one. When all the roots died what does that mean? Will it live? But the leaves are all healty. Anyway, thank you. :)

mikerno_1micha, small rocks do work? Well I repotted it when I first bought it, is it okay to repotted it again and trim some dead roots?

Francis, if you collect from the seashore, you're going to have to be very, very careful to wash the salt off of it.

Best,

Judy

judyj, is it okay if I sterilize those small rocks with hot water?

I use deep well water is it okay to use it for watering orchids?

Is it okay to use pine dead branch? I'll just cut it into pieces.

Lol your questions never stop, just choose a media and be done with it, avid lighting , good airflow to prevent rot, since it's extra warm by you you wouldn't want anything that retain moisture too much, so dry bark, rocks and a surface that Is porous , like lava rock n daily misting ,clay pot is good but with media it suffocates , watch your watering , give it a soaking then let it dry out, air naturally because your region is normally warm it's a plus they should be thriving by you. Air circulation is key and adequate light , watch watering ....

With Phals, the key to healthy plants is finding the balance between watering...You can not have a healthy Phal if you do not allow the roots to get hydrated enough...If they do not turn plump and green they are dying of thirst..If they stay wet too long, they will rot, although I find in very warm weather almost impossible if growing in a well draining medium and even fresh Moss for about a year...You need to make sure your roots turn green as they plump up..They are not like regular house plants)

Most of the ones you buy at the store have been damaged. Many put them in dry room and the roots will tighten up faster than they think if not misted or set in a humid environment. The aerial roots need to be misted daily if conditions indoors are dry. Many already exist in aged sphagnum moss, some are kept in cool conditions with a media that stays wet too long...I find mine are perform very well in a well lighted area in warm conditions soaked once a week in a tub of fresh water this time of the year..Then when outside for the warmer summer months, they can take all the watering I can give them.

You had some good points but what I find the most challenging is preventing crown rot, too much moisture and its bad too little moisture the roots withdraw, so I found good air circulation to be the culprit, because in a normally warm region the orchids would thrive could basically grow mounted in free air with regular misting like an air plant or , water vapor,humidifier near by good light and there happy , however in colder climates the air becomes dryer ,more oxygen but the plants suffer humidity wise which is a big thing for them,they love humidity which however causes fungus and crown rot so its complicAted, a dry orchid is just as bad as an overwatered orchid. Too me unless you can mimic the amazon climate or keep them terrarium style inclosed,or greenhouse its hard to keep them happy because our temperature fluctuates in different regions... unless your raising seedlings and though the majority die off the ones who remained have became acclimated to your surroundings. Until their sold & the shock preventing them for living too much longer from that..

I realized orchids love water they love it , however their used to getting it from the air , which is thick and moist, fog like ,from where their from aside from the occasional down pours the amazon gets ,which is then absorbed by the air as condensation /evaporation happens and they absorb it in turn like a sponge soaking up water there makeup is designed to absorb water from the air, but we couldnt live in such a constant wet, damp,clammy environment like that. Where mold will thrive. Come to find out they live off some of that same mold and fungus found growing while there hanging out on rocks and trees so they love it but ,for us not good so yea I love orchids but unless you can cater to their needs its hard. I think there better left in their natural environment, because we kill them by the boat loads ,only interested in their blooms....lol probably why they make hundreds to thousands of seeds...lol they knew better & the one who created them. Else they would have been loong extinct in no time by us.

The tropical myth lives!. Heat, Humidity, sweat on the brow and so on leads to misting, overwatering and death of orchids.

Not a nice day here to day. It is 3.40 in the afternoon and conditions down in the 3 growing houses the temperature is approx. 40C. Humidity 12%. This weather was forecast so I watered everything thoroughly this morning and put the extra summer layer of Shade-cloth on the roof of the shade-house. Nothing will die. What do you think those pseudobulbs are for on many Genera?

Needless to say the Phalaenopsis are not out there. They are in this room where it is 30.5C and the humidity is 52%. I never mist them!

I figure to grow every type of orchid you would need many sets of growing conditions.

Tropical Lowland

Tropical mist forest

Tropical Savannah

Sub tropical erratic rainfall

Semi Desert

Cool mist forest

Cold winter Climate for many terrestrials

Mediterranean

And so on

I agree partially but my phals sure loves a super fine mist its compensates for my lack of being able to give them 52% humidity , im doing the same just manuel Labour here, yours achieved through humidity "automatic" &orchids with bulbs are a no brainer non comparison to those with none . Ofcourse . Those with pseudo bulbs can take dryer climates thats common sense and rarely need misting or high humidity but again common sense when we can see that luscious bulb full and storing all it needs. My emphasis on humidy was to my dear beloved phals inwhich are my favorite of the orchid gene

It would help enormously if you would put where you live next your id.

I maintain that more Phalaenopsis are killed by the tropical myth than for any other reason.

A lady who runs a florist shop tells her customers to water them once a month! Of course they are potted in the dreaded spag.

The other reason for death here is the "Phals are orchids reasoning" so they get put out in the yard with the Cymbidiums. RIP Phalaenopsis.

You do realise that the Original Poster lives in Climate Zone 12.

Back to the rain forest stuff....there is one about 50 K south of here. Temperate Rain forest. The Automatic Weather Station on its edge says the current Humidity is 12%.

Relief is on the way, the wind will turn away from the arid interior of the continent and will be replaced by cooler moist pacific air. It doesn't have to rain, a clear still night and dew replenishes the water in many a rainforest.

Oh, well im located in zone 6b-7a newjersey,united states & because I grow inside misting is needed else I could grow them outside untill winter comes rolling in atleast .

Because we get rain often humidity is always like30- 40% -peak-50% over here and theres still many forest patches & many trees around ,as there is one right behind my house which is why I thought to one day be a rogue get about 4-5 capsules of orchid seeds and just let the wind take them away in a few years I would have definitely aided to the surprise turn up of wild orchids near and far. Proudly!

Off subject I know but though your right about originating from zone 12 which is true ..ive found that phals love humidity either way its said however like I said which is challenging because that do encourages crown rot. ..... luckily my room apart from the rest of the house acts like a mini green house all on it own for a reason beyond my knowing why plants thrive in it. I had to desperately gind a way to get humidity out. & I keep air circulating always. ..

Looks like it took a long discussions, well, my orchids are placed outside but shaded I think facing west. As a newbie in growing orchids I am determined that I'll be taking good care of them and I'm happy and enjoying them as a green plant and having their roots developed makes me happy as well. Thanks for your opinions. :)

Luv. Good point!! I forgot to mention good air circulation is s must most times. Although I do know many that keep them very healthy without. Those people never wait until the sphagnum moss gets old and water until the roots plump up and then water only when almost dry. They also keep then in very warm conditions. If kept in cool conditions indoors. They will rot no matter what you do or use.

Hi

Since you live in the Phillipines you should be 95 percent of the way to growing phals since that's their origin?? Don't forget that there are 3 major habitats . High altitude ,seasonal and lowland tropical all of which have been hybridized . Assuming you live in the lowland tropical area?? Be sure to get types suitable for continuous warmth high humidity and little season change .

You need local advice on how to tell the difference . I doubt that I have ever seen a wild specimen since they have been hybridized to death lol

There should be dozens that will fit your climate perfectly . Can you visit any of the nurseries?? They turn out phals like popcorn so they obviously know what they're doing??. before making drastic changes I would certainly seek out local advice!! I've seen pix on the net where they were growing them in coconut shells using goat pellets as well as horse manure lol

I would certainly get advice from them !! gary

Thanks garyfla_gwv but there are no nurseries in our city, vendors are not from our city they just travel here every Oct.1st for the festival of our lady of the Pillar, they come and sell different kinds of orchids like dendrobiums, cymbidiums, cattleyas, phals, vandas and different cross breeds of orchids. I have three kinds of varieties of vanadas there are no problems with them cause they love the sunlight but I keep them shaded with very bright light outside the house and the the rest of the orchids, i just want to know how does phals will be like if I took care of them, they're so damn lovely.

Seeking some advice from people here? Gosh! I think I'm the only one who loves orchids at my young age(23) I guess? I have the patience but I'm not quite sure if they'll(orchids) love me. Lol. Mostly old ladies are interested in orchids and they're very few of them.

Wow..I can't believe how confusing thread got..lol

It's as simple as the roots were half dead when you bought it, you can tell and the roost need to be watered correctly, no matter where you live..The roots are like electrical wiring with an out shell and if moisture does not get through the outer shell to the root under that armor, the roots will die of desiccation like what happened there...For instance..

Here is the root under the outer shell.......I peel the outer shell back for you to see the root...It take a few minutes for moisture to get through the out layer unless your plant is exposed to higher humidity like in summer..Sometimes it take watering a few times before the roots get enough moisture or a good soaking...

Before a good soaking...And I just watered 3 days ago.....Do you see how dry they look? In the pot too...Any longer than a couple of days and they would desiccate even up here in New England..

After a good soaking in a bucket with fresh water...Long enough to water the roots under the armor...

For me, rot is caused by a a media that stays wet too long only when there is less sunlight and cool temps...When the weather is very warm such as in summer, they can handle staying wet longer....You area should be perfect for the plants in aery media..

Thanks mikerno_1micha(Zone 6a, Massachusetts).

I used to live in a very warm climate and grew my phals in wire hanging baskets lined with coconut husks and filled with charcoal. They grew exceptionally well.

Sounds great Adam Harbeck, thanks. :)

Adam Harbeck, how often do you water your phals in a very warm climate?

I agree mikerno_1micha ! Plus that info you gave on the dried root makes sense !!

As something like that happened with my last mini orchid , the roots dried out wet spagh and my heater on high aniliated there roots, it did not rot them they were green and shriveled and I pondered why the uptake of water was slow bout time I tried to recover with soaking it was too late crown rot settled in, but your explaination make sense!

Its own Dry covering was suffocating the desicated root. Its interesting the problem is orchid roots are long and wirey and keeping consistant moisture to them is key. Thats what the velamin does naturally supplying warmth moisture and nutrition 24/7 as long as we give them drenching. And as far as the manure I know this is true, orchid are heavy eaters not through the fertilizers we give them which causes complications, though it works but through the more organic matter as they would get lieing on a tree, or rock and water way, debree , old leaves, manure from passing animals, dead insects, fish bone meal etc .

I learned this when a fruit fly landed on a dendrobium seedling I had growing in water culture and died ,the seedling had a growth spurt and was gleaning like thanks for the protein ! I kid you not And all evidence of fruitfly was gone I never looked at that orchid the same way again. Aparently they get hardy diets in the wild feeding off many things gaining nutrients to survive.

jane__ny(9-10), thank you so much! Your opinion is such a good help for a new orchid grower like me. My Phal Amabilis matured orchid does good in a clear plastic pot with holes and I keep it hanging and it does very well I cut the flower spike after bloom all way to the base to save more energy for the next season rather than to induce bloom as i follow on the video, that phal on the picture is a young phal that I bought before I repotted it the the roots are not very good so I'm hoping to save an phal even if its my first time to grow orchids. I'd rather buy an phal w/c has not been bloom for me to enjoy it as a green plant. Although I've been collecting diff. orchids like cattleya, dendrobium, oncidium and cymbidium. Phal is so damn beautiful for me.

I hope to se root development on that sick phal.

Francis Earl Atilano, four years later I am asking you if you had success with your Phalaenopsis orchid? Are you growing more?