Leaves a little curled or twisted or too green?
 

Hi,

Please can you tell me if this looks healthy or not? I know it needs repotting. Am just a bit worried about it as read the leaves could be unhealthy? Any advice is appreciated. Thank you in advance.

First, Welcome!

That plant looks very healthy indeed. Don't worry about leaves twisting. It is crowded in there. The color of the leaves looks very good. How long have you had the plant? That flower spike looks nice and green too - after blooming, I tend to leave those, sometimes they branch and produce more flowers. I would just repot into a slightly larger pot, with fresh medium (I like bark but others use sphagnum). The goal is lots of fresh air around the roots, either approach works. With fresh medium you do need to water more often than you did in the old stuff.

Don't worry if some roots escape - air roots are natural for Phalaenopsis.

Thank you so much.
 

I’ve had it since the end of last summer. I got it from marks and Spencers. The flowers on it lasted over 3 months and there were loads. I haven’t cut it back as it looks ok around the spike areas. I just didn’t know if the leaves were a problem as I read all sorts of horror stories about curling and twisted leaves. I know it needs repotting and going to do that this weekend. Am just waiting for the bark and clear pots to come. Thank you so much. I was so worried about it last night I moved it out of the sunlight just in case but I will put it back now.

Do be careful of light as day length increases and there is a higher sun angle. Phals like somewhat subdued light, for 12 hours a day. (Next fall/winter you may need to add some supplemental lighting to get blooms) So if leaves feel warm, move it away from the window a bit.

Sorry for sounding stupid but what do you mean by supplement lighting? I really do not have a clue. I am winging it at the moment. If it’s a cloudy day I’ll leave it on the window ledge but if the sun is out I move it away so it’s not directly on the plant. Is that what I’m meant to do? Also do you think it needs watering more than once a week with all them leaves? It’s there are a lot in that plant. Thank you for your replies and help.

First, not stupid at all! The only stupid question is the one that isn't asked.

Where you live, in summer the days are long and in winter they are both short and dark. The main reason that people sometimes have trouble getting these to rebloom is not enough hours of light. I am quite a bit more south, and I found that my success rate of reblooming increased tremendously when I added some lights to bring "day" up to 12 hours. Plain old cheap LED "daylight" bulbs in any sort of lamp that fits. (I used shop lights because it was a large area and I didn't care how it looked. A lamp would work as well for a small area).

But for now, with spring approaching, I wouldn't worry about getting enough light. What you do need to watch is intensity - leaves do toast pretty easily, and the change in light can catch you by surprise. (I have toasted more leaves in late March, right around the equinox, than any other time of year when the sun suddenly clears barriers like walls and houses and trees) If it looks very bright where the plant is sitting, feel the leaves. Your fingers can tell when they're getting hot and then you can head off a problem well before the burning point.

As for watering, you can't do it by the calendar. A trick that may help you learn the "pattern" of your plant is to water it well (like under the kitchen faucet), let it drain, and then weigh it (kitchen scale or postal scale). Weigh it again the next day, etc. When the rate of weight loss starts to decline (not much more water to evaporate), it's time to water. How often that happens depends on the exact conditions (medium, pot type, humidity, air movement) so you'll need to determine the right interval for YOU, by observing the plant. Especially with fresh medium especially, once a week is probably not enough. With fresh medium (lots of air space) don't worry too much about overwatering. You'll certainly be watering more often than in the old medium that has been in the pot for maybe a few years.

One note on repotting... don't worry about removing all the old medium. Just remove what comes off easily. Root preservation is your goal, aggressive "cleaning" damages roots and isn't needed.

Welcome to the Orchid Board!

Thank you so much for your advise. I have saved these messages in the hope they will help me care for my orchid correctly. When I re-pot I will weigh what it is and use that as a guideline. Thank you again for your awesome information and guidance. I will be sure to come back if I encounter any problems. Have a lovely day.