Rescue - Eria Pulchella

[RoutineDisco]

Hi everyone, I recently got an Eria Pulchella in the mail. It was pretty cheap and I wasn’t expecting too much but it came with some questionably viable roots and two very dehydrated pseudobulbs. The rhizome was so long that I basically had no choice but to cut it because it wouldn’t fit in any pot and wouldn’t even fit in my gallon sized bags, plus it was inflexible even after wetting/a short soak.

I know separating two dehydrated pseudobulbs was stupid but it just didn’t fit in any container I had…but I put both halves in a plastic baggie with damp sphagnum moss covering roots, then gently tied the bag for a little ventilation around the bulbs and leaves. Anything else I can do and does this plant have any chance of survival? Photos will come tonight.

[estación seca]

Erias generally have long rhizomes, with most roots dangling in the air. Even if you pot them they will wander out of the pot immediately. I think they would be hard to keep alive in a typical home with low humidity.

[RoutineDisco]

I’m fine with mounting it so it can sprawl or accommodating it in other ways in the future - my current concern is whether or not it has any chance of survival and what I can do to encourage recovery.

Based on the limited info online and some brief research into other species under the eria genus, I think it has some viable roots as they turned brown/red when I sprayed them and were a bit fuzzy. I’ve added a picture to the initial post - any thoughts on recovery timeline/whether it has any chance at all?

[estación seca]

The bag could easily keep the orchid and medium too wet. Sick plants are far more susceptible to infections. Better would be keeping it more open to air but with high humidity and frequent watering. Or, a terrarium large enough the leaves don't touch the walls.

[RoutineDisco]

Thanks for the tip; I moved the plant to an aquarium and I decided to mount it today since I was afraid the sphagnum moss would get moldy. Unfortunately all the leaves fell off…but I have the plant directly next to a humidifier and am spraying the roots a few times a day since they dry so quickly (and they appear to still be soaking up water). I’m not really sure how to add photos to a reply so I’ve updated my original post, but does it look like there might be a bump where new growth would emerge?