orchid turned for worse :(
 

As some of you know a while back I purchased a phal with roots rotted, repotted into bark to try to save it ( it was in sphag) and now the leafs are dying. They are not falling off like one would with crown rot, but none the less dying. starting from the bottom. Even the very newest one has seemingly terminal road maps scrawled all over its underside... here is my plethora of pictures... what do you suggest!!! Thank you for all your help...

it appears that the picture of the underside of the leaf did not turn out as bad as it really is.... my camera does not do wel with close ups. but as you can see the bases of some of the leaves are brown and drying. thanks again... any insructions will help me! im a newbie yet... this is orchid number 2... number one is doing well!!! thanks

From my view it looks thirsty. Does it have roots?

Hi Tim,

Your probably not going to like my suggestion but I'd remove the spike and put it in a vase of water. If you don't remove it your plant will continue to weaken. I can see some nice looking roots but there probably isn't enough of them yet to support healthy leaves and blooms at the same time. Chances are you will loose the lower leaves even if you remove the spike. The upper leaves aren't too far gone yet and they'll likely plump back up within a few days to a few weeks with proper watering.

Ok, your post says roots rotted, sorry. I would get that plant in a bag with indirect light. Keep humidity high. Good luck.

Ya... it does have roots left.... not a TON, but i would definately think enough to support the plant... after all it is not a large plant... do you think that i should possibly water more often?

from what I can see, it has at least 1 good root growing into the medium. That's a good start. The leaves look dessicated, but that can be because the plant did not have enough root mass to sustain them (and there are not enough healthy roots even now). The plant is still stressed. You could try to help it by increasing the humidity around the plant (create a tent, put it in an enclosed area) and put it on a heat mat to stimulate root growth. It's going to take time. Good luck

Trust me, your spike is robbing energy from your plant that it needs for suvival. It really needs more roots to support the spike and flowers. If the spike remains the plant will continue to weaken and it could even die. Removing the spike at this stage will encourage growth of roots and leaves.

Junebug took the words right out of my mouth. For a plant to bloom and hold it's flowers, it takes a lot of energy. I second Junebug's motion of cutting off the spike.

When watering, you might try luke-warm water (not hot or cold) to help stimulate more root growth. In addition, you might try getting some KLN Root Stimulator and use just a little bit with each watering. Another good item is Dyna-Gro ProTekt Silicon Supplement. It helps to eleviate stress symptoms caused by various environmental stresses. Again, just a teensy dab each watering.

You're not going to like the next thing I have to say though, lol... Right up there with Junebug's suggestion of the flower spike. But first, a quick question - how many healthy roots do you have left? If you have only a handful, then you should consider cutting off the bottom 2 to 4 leaves, leaving only a few at the top. Dust the cuts lightly with cinnamon to prevent opportunistic infections.

The reason for this? Even leaves need roots to give them energy to live. If you don't have enough roots and those few roots are attempting to gather enough water and nutrition for too many leaves, then of course it's out of balance. By reducing the number of leaves you have (only the bottom older ones though), you are signaling to the plant that it can now focus on root growth even more now that there are not so many leaves to feed and sustain.

is this juihbao fairy?

anyways, yes, the spike robs nutrients the plant could be sending to growing roots. increasing humidity and the tempurature at the root zone could help, ive heard. using a seedling mat to make the root zone warm. i do recommend a hormone like superthrive because it seemed to help my plants make roots

I agree, cut the spike. That plant will live with the roots that are showing. It will just need a bit of extra care for a while. I know lots of people are against misting Phals because of the risk of crown rot. But I'm sure that's what saved a rescue I had with less roots than yours. Or put it in a terrarium. If you do mist it, just make sure no water sits in the crown where the leaves join in the centre. If you take care of that, no harm will come to it.

Actually yes it is juihbao fairy. I was kindof surprised at its coloring comparing it to the hausermanns image. It really doesn't have the pink blush throughout. I was kindof disappointed, but it is still VERY attractive! The only orchid I really like more than it is the first orchid I have ever been given :) hopefully it remains to be my second favorite
because if it doesn't that means the worst happened!!
Thanks for all the help thus far. It's gunna be hard to cut it off. Was looking forward to christmas blooms but the plant is worth more and will give me more flowers if I take care of it right. you guys are awesome!

How long may a spike last in water? do you think it may last until Christmas?

I've had cut phal spikes in a vase of water for 2 months. Just keep them out of the sun and change the water once a week or so, just like cut flowers.
Joann

Well... heres what i did...
 

I went ahead and took off the flower spike:violin::tombstone: hard for me to do!!! :(

ok, then i put the plant itself into a large ziploc bag and sealed it to create a humid environment. I put some warm water at the bottom of the bag to get the humidity going, but the water does not have contact with the pot because the pot is in a tray in the bag. Does all of this sound like a good thing? correct me if it is not

Also, i do not have any of those products that you guys mentioned. I am kindof on a tight budget right now, getting ready for college and all. Will it be ok without? i do have powder rooting hormone?

one last inquirey... the pot seems to be half wet and half dry. first of all there is one half of it that is wet on the bottom, while the other half looks dry/dryer! the rest of the pot may be this way.... what is causing this and is there a sure fire way to tell when to for sure water? ( as in wait till the whole thing is dry, wait till half dry... idk) thanks for the help again.

When it's in a plastic bag, you might want to open it partway to let some air in. Some people (including me) have trouble with mold when they are placed in a bag. Some powder rooting hormones are too strong for orchids so I would not use it. You do have roots and if you are careful it will likely survive.

A surefire method that I use to tell when to water, is to put a bamboo kebab skewer in the center of the pot down near the bottom. Leave it there and when you think it is time to water, pull it out and see if it is wet, damp or dry. If it is dry or just barely damp, you can water. If it is wet, then wait and test again in a few days. Put it back in the same place so as not to poke holes in roots. It really seems to work for me. In the meantime, you could mist those surface roots now and then as they may be the only ones providing moisture to the leaves and need to be watered if the surface is dry. Just try not to let the whole pot sit wet for days at a time.

ok... should i be fertilizing? forgot to ask

You could fertilize with 1/4 or 1/2 strength weekly or every other week. Once a month it is good to flush with clear water.

And you're absolutely fine without all the rest of the fancy stuff we were talking about. Those would just help assist your plant with recovery perhaps a little faster, but they are not necessary at all.

If it were mine I would not seal it up in a plastic bag, you risk rotting it. I only do that (with limited success) on absolutely rootless plants which this one is not. You will lose the bottom 3-4 leaves no matter what. They are too far gone to be saved. However, if the newest leaf looks good and firm the plant will most likely be fine.

The pot looks exceedingly dry to me. I would do as silken suggests and put a bamboo skewer into the center of the pot and leave it there. Pull it out to check for moisture. Phals like to be evenly moist, and I fear you may have overcorrected by underwatering.