white deposits on my phals roots!

[fox]

hi all!

so this morning, i was examining my phals to see if they needed watering, and i noticed that there was white stuff all over my phals roots! i could see it through the clear container. so i pullled the roots out to examine closely. the substrate seems to be primarily bark with a bit of moss.

i just bought this phal last week. i only watered it once. i don't believe this white junk was there when i purchased it... although it is hard to believe. i guess its possible it was.

what do you think this is? what should i do? when i repot should i get new substrate?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

It's fungal. And yes, repot into new media. The white fungus is also on a few pieces of bark. The bark has begun to deteriorate.

[fox]

thank you! sorry to bother you again, but does this mean i was watering it too much or keeping it too warm and moist?

or is it just a fluke thing?

thanks in advance.

[fox]

oh also!

what should i use to rub the fungus off the roots?!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

No...no bother.

I don't think it's anything you mentioned.

I think it's more that it's old and hasn't been repotted into fresh bark. I don't know how the people you got the plant from grew it, so I can't say anything about that.

Regardless, it's broken down and needs to be replaced. That's all I can really say.

Hope this was helpful.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Listerine? A lot people seem to like it. I would like it too, if I knew more about it and used it on my plants...

It disinfects, and cleans off easy leaving no visible residue behind, I would imagine.

But I think the one that people here would suggest is the original one.

I hesitate to say isopropyl alcohol, it could be more dangerous than good. Never know with this treatment.

Hydrogen peroxide is probably a better choice.

Or even ethyl alcohol.

There's no need to bust out the big guns and get a fungicide for this problem, in my opinion.

I don't know, maybe others have a different view.

[camille1585]

Some people here are big fans of listerine. Just spray the roots with it, let it dry and pot up. Never use rubbing alcohol. It's good to kill insects and is ok to use on leaves, but using it on roots has disasterous consequences (and I speak from personal experience here!)