Can you save this rescue orchid?

[flowerpower]

Hi everyone. I'm not very experienced at caring for orchids...

I have been away for the weekend and when I came back I found this in the living room. My partner found this abandoned orchid in a waste bin at work! Sorry for the poor quality photo I had to take it on my phone.

Anyway, the orchid is sitting in a random square container, with various potting materials, mainly stones/wirey stuff. There are NO drainage holes. It has many aerial roots, some of them clearly rotting. No evidence of flower spikes.

I have a few questions?

- do you think it's a phalaenopsis?
- what do you recommend I do to save it?

I think I should get it into a new pot quickly. It's not even in a pot just a square office container. What should I do about these rotting roots?

Eek. I need an expert orchid grower to give some tips!

[RosieC]

Hi flowerpower,

It does look like a Phal to me.

I think you should take it out the 'pot' and cut off any rotting roots. If the roots are soft and mushy/hollow then cut them off, any which are firm should be left.

I think from what I can see that you will still have some long arial roots left, I've saved ones with less roots so I think it's got a good chance.

If you don't have a pot or potting medium available imediately don't worry. With care you can keep it bare root, I've done this by treating a bit like a mounted 'chid and watering the roots every day and then leaving loose the rest of the time.

Repot in a clear pot and personally I would use a medium to large grade bark.

I don't like the stuff you get in garden centers or places like that (the stuff I got locally is what almost killed two of my Phals) but the medium I bought from this UK site has been really good and my plants have done really well in it.

Orchid Accessories - www.orchidaccessories.co.uk

Anyway, I would get it out that pot sooner rather than later.

[flowerpower]

Thanks for reply Rosie C. As for damaged leaves, there are a couple with slight holes in that look like it has been bashed. Should they be left alone until the plant naturally sheds them?

I was hoping to use B+Qs orchid potting mix. Have you ever tried that?

I'll follow up with some photos when it is seeing better days

The roots can just be snipped off anywhere as long as the rotten part is gone, is that correct? Or should the whole root go?

[RosieC]

I just cut off the rotted part of roots. Then dab the very end with cinnamon. Be careful not to use too much cinamon on the roots as it can dry them out too much, but a dab on the cut end helps stop infection.

I've not tried B&Q orchid potting mix. I'm guessing it's the one on this link, is that right?

B&Q Orchid Compost 6 Litres

Personally I don't like ones which contain peat like that says it does, I find it can make it too compact for orchids like Phals. I think some people get on OK with them though.

I used one from Dobbies garden center and that was just bark but had already decayed in the bag (which I didn't realise as it was the first time I had repotted a Phal). Both Phals which went in that mix soon lost all their roots and are only just starting to recover, others I repotted in exactly the same way with a better mix have not missed a beat after repotting.

Personally after that experience I stear clear of medium which does not come from orchid specialists, but that may just be me being over cautious.

Anyway I would just leave the bashed leaves. If the holes/damage looks fresh you might want to dust the cuts with cinnamon. If they look old and the edges have already dried then their is not much point so just leave them. They will eventually drop off as the Phal grows new leaves.

[flowerpower]

I ended up going with the B+Q orchid mix because I was desperate to get it out of that hideous state it was in. Rosie, I think you're right about it being less airy. I'm going to order from that site and get some nice airy bark chippings that my other orchid is in. When that one is due to be re-potted I will do them both together into larger pots if necessary.

The B+Q compost looks like soil but there is some spongy stuff mixed in and a few bark chippings.

While I was there, I got some larger clear pots (6"). I was going to put this orchid into a 6" pot, but ended up putting it into a small 4.5" pot. It looks on the large side for this pot! The roots are tucked in quite a lot, but I did read that they like to be on the snug side. When/If it climbs out of this one, I will upgrade to the 6".

As for the roots: there were a lot of them. Some were dry, papery and brown and just fell off. Some were mushy and slid off in my hands and exposed the wiry inner root. I snipped these back further along the root. There were lots of brown roots which felt firm. I decided to leave them for now, as I wasn't sure. I saw this thread on Orchid boards which suggested these are healthy roots covered in velamin.

Here are some pictures of the Orchid now. I'm still uncertain about one of its leaves which is literally hanging on for dear life

I am encouraged by the small leaf at the top which indicates the plant is still growing. What this orchid has been through is tantamount to abuse but it might just make it! Thanks so much for your advice!

Repotted:


Damaged leaf:

[Brenda Aarts]

Looks like a great job on the repot! A little tlc and she'll be flowering to reward you. Congratulations.

[trdyl]

Flowerpower nicely done clean up on that phalaenopsis.

[Bird Song Farm]

Hi,
A great job of repotting the phal. It looks like it has a very good chance now. Just leave the leaf that is hanging on for dear life. It will eventually turn yellow and will drop off, or, when all yellow a slight tug on it will be enough to have it come off. If you really want to get rid of it, just snip it off and put a bit of cinnamon on the cut.

Good job.
Al

[nutgirl]

The pot looks just right. Since your potting medium is on the heavy side, be careful about letting it stay too wet and make sure there's enough drainage.

It can look/feel dry on top but be sopping inside.

Maureen

[RosieC]

Originally Posted by nutgirl

The pot looks just right. Since your potting medium is on the heavy side, be careful about letting it stay too wet and make sure there's enough drainage.

It can look/feel dry on top but be sopping inside.

Maureen

I agree with Maureen.

You did the right thing to go with the smaller pot, especially with the heavy medium. Ocasionally when I've had to use a pot I thought was too big I've compensated with very large grade bark with huge air spaces in it.

Also I agree about taking care about it being too wet. My aunt potted a couple, in medium which sounds very like what you describe, a couple of days before she then decided to given one of them to me. The medium looked VERY dry on top but when I got home I pulled it out (to put in my own choice of medium) and it was still sopping wet lower down. She had also put it in a pot which was WAY too big and I think you will find it easier to control watering in the smaller pot, but take care.

Anyway it's looking a lot happier in it's new pot.