Trying to save grandma's orchids (clueless newbie here)

[chloe13]

Hi all,
I apologize to be such a clueless newbie, but clearly you guys really know what you're talking about and I'd appreciate your input...
My grandmother has grown cymbidium orchids for longer than I've been alive, however, recently the orchid houses in the backyard had to be torn down and she's no longer able to care for them.
She got rid of most of them and only about 20 were kept in black plastic pots under a large shady tree in the yard since then.

Last week my grandma gave me one to take to my new apartment, since it's the first with my own outdoor space to keep plants.
It was in pretty sad shape and I'm not even sure it's still alive?
Since it was kept under a tree, the pot was full of dead tree leaves and the pot was also cracked so I hastily re-potted the plant, which I realize now may have been a mistake.

After taking out all of the dead materials from the pot, the plant itself was fairly loose and came out pretty easily. It looks like it might be 2 separate plants, but since they were in one pot before I repotted them together in one pot.
The orchid had a lot of built up dead leaves and nubs I'll call them, I don't know what they actually are, but if it didn't easily pull off I left it alone in case they weren't actually dead.

I used an orchid potting mix (Miracle Grow I think?) and have been watering it, what I think, is thoroughly every other day or so. I noticed the pot had "rolly pollies" and itty bitty black spiders in it as well as some slugs, are these guys bad or should I let them be?

Again, I apologize for really knowing nothing about taking care of orchids other than watching my grandma as a child. I don't know proper terms either, so hopefully this has made sense and if not here are some pictures of my plant.


This is one of the two 'clusters' or plants, which is also crooked and not interested in standing up right...


This is the second cluster or plant...


Full picture, taken before I did some additional tidying up. The close-ups were taken today. As you can see, some of the longer leaves have cracked and are bent in half. There's also some black spots here and there, and some of the leaves tips were black which I cut off.


I would appreciate any advice in caring for my new orchid as I'd like to be able to restore the rest of my grandma's orchids so she can have some flowers again Thanks in advance!

[ronaldhanko]

Hi,
The cracked leaves are not a problem. Just leave them. The black spots do not appear to be a problem either. Most of the old leafless pseudobulbs (they're the bulbous lower parts of the growths) appear to be dead and should be removed. That will leave the plant much smaller and in too large a pot (Cymbidiums like to be a bit root-bound in my experience). Pot it in a smaller pot and keep it fairly well watered until new growth starts - then water it quite heavily but make sure the drainage is good, and give it a fair bit of a fertilizer that is not too high in nitrogen (15-30-15 - I put a pinch in a gallon of water every time I water while the plant is in growth). It can be and should be kept outside until frost and kept as cool as possible when brought indoors. It should also be given as much light as possible, but be careful not to put it out into full sun without first acclimating it, since it will sunburn.

[ronaldhanko]

No apologies needed for questions. The only stupid person is the person who doesn't ask questions. That's the way we all learn.

[chloe13]

Hi,
Thank you so much for replying! I appreciate it.
So it's okay to remove those dead looking bulbs, that's good to know. There's one or two of those leafless bulbs that are actually green underneath the dead stuff, should I just pull off the dead build up and leave those ones or go ahead and take them out too since they don't have leaves?

As for light, my only outdoor spaces are a south facing porch and a north facing patio, neither of which get any sunlight. Do you think this is a problem?
I remember my grandmother kept hers in an orchid house which had some type of bamboo roof, I don't recall there being much light in there so hopefully they don't mind.

Lastly, my plant is currently outside and here in Los Angeles I won't have to worry much about any low temperatures. I might have to worry more about it being too warm?
We've had weather fluctuating between 85 and 70 for the past few weeks, this weeks low is supposed to be 67 tomorrow but then with a high of 80 again over the weekend. Night time temps supposedly are in the 50s though, so hopefully that lets them cool off.

Have you or anyone else here had any success growing orchids in a constant shaded area?

I unfortunately don't have any sunny options, my home is completely shaded by many large old trees.
Light gets let in on the 2nd floor, but with all the bugs in that pot I'm not too interested in keeping it indoors. I also have a husky with a tendency to prey on anything and everything in her reach if left alone... the last victim was a small orange tree which she completely chewed down

[ronaldhanko]

Originally Posted by chloe13

Hi,
Thank you so much for replying! I appreciate it.
So it's okay to remove those dead looking bulbs, that's good to know. There's one or two of those leafless bulbs that are actually green underneath the dead stuff, should I just pull off the dead build up and leave those ones or go ahead and take them out too since they don't have leaves?

As for light, my only outdoor spaces are a south facing porch and a north facing patio, neither of which get any sunlight. Do you think this is a problem?
I remember my grandmother kept hers in an orchid house which had some type of bamboo roof, I don't recall there being much light in there so hopefully they don't mind.

Lastly, my plant is currently outside and here in Los Angeles I won't have to worry much about any low temperatures. I might have to worry more about it being too warm?
We've had weather fluctuating between 85 and 70 for the past few weeks, this weeks low is supposed to be 67 tomorrow but then with a high of 80 again over the weekend. Night time temps supposedly are in the 50s though, so hopefully that lets them cool off.

Have you or anyone else here had any success growing orchids in a constant shaded area?

I unfortunately don't have any sunny options, my home is completely shaded by many large old trees.
Light gets let in on the 2nd floor, but with all the bugs in that pot I'm not too interested in keeping it indoors. I also have a husky with a tendency to prey on anything and everything in her reach if left alone... the last victim was a small orange tree which she completely chewed down

If the pseudobulbs are still green leave them on - they'll help provide strength for thee growing plant. If you can keep them outdoors that's probably the best - even under trees they'll be getting a lot more light than indoors and if you live in LA you can keep them outdoors all year around - only if there's a had frost will you have to protect them. Cymbidiums are fairly high light plants, so if you want low light orchids you'll have to think about Phalaenopsis or Paphiopedilums. I think yoou'll be all right, though, with the Cymbidiums on the porch or outdoors.

[Jim Kawasaki]

Ron is right, the current pot is too large for the size of the plant. When you repot it, remove any pseudobulbs (bulbs) that feel soft when squeezed then remove as much of the dead leaf husks to expose the condition of the bulbs. If they are completely green (no brown or black areas), they are still alive and healthy but have gone dormant. Repot what is left into a pot that is about twice the size of the remaining bulbs. Keep it in a place where it will receive as much light as possible durng the summer growing season, but if no direct sunlight is available, indirect bright light (reflected from a wall) would be the second choice.

Also, if there are any soft mushy roots, cut them off prior to repotting. I would suggest feeding it a balance type orchid fertilizer all year round with each watering but at 1/4 the suggested amount on the container.

Hope this helps.

Jim

[Cym Ladye]

I was under the impression we had a culture/repotting sheet on cyms on this forum but when I searched for one, I did not find one of real value, other than the rather generic AOS advice. I know Ray has an excellent one on his site, but I feel we might want to consider one of that more "down to basics" type here for a ready reference for the type of question Chloe has asked.

I will volunteer one I have used for years in conducting repotting workshops if the forum leaders would allow it to be posted in the proper location.

CL