wrinkled leaves on my orchids

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

It looks like it could be an orchid in the Oncidium Alliance, you most likely have a hybrid of some sort, unless you purchased your orchid at a specialty orchid nursery dealing in species orchids.

With that said, yes, the orchid is dehydrated and it could possibly be from not watering enough, (prolonged periods of not watering enough might also kill roots as well); watering too much and rotting the roots out so that the orchid is not getting the proper amount of hydration it needs to flourish; it could also be a possibility that you may not be watering a whole lot, but the potting media is retaining too much water and it is not allowing the roots to breathe, therefore killing your orchid's roots; or it could be that the potting media has gone bad because it has not been changed for too long, and it is killing the orchid's roots that way. There's also a possibility that the pot's too big, allowing the potting media to stay wet for too long because there aren't enough roots to absorb that water, thus drowning out the roots, then killing some of them.

Please take a better picture of what the potting media is, show us and tell us how big the pot is, and show us a photo of the entire plant. Also provide specific growing parameters such as temperature, lighting, and humidity if possible. Then a far more accurate picture of what's going on with the orchid can be assessed.

Btw, I suspect a few things are going on with this plant…

1. Pot might be too big.

2. Potting media may have gone bad.

3. Inappropriate potting media.

4. Damaged roots, (for whatever reasons).


For you, follow these steps, please:

Step 1: Provide the kinds of photos I mentioned and post them on the OB for people here to see so you may get a far better diagnosis.

Step 2: Provide the specific parameters I mentioned so that people get the whole picture of what's going on, and you might get a far better diagnosis.

Step 3: Check the roots and provide a good photo of those, and make no judgments about the quality of the root mass until you get opinions from those who are more experienced on the matter.

Step 4: Wait for responses before you act.

Step 5: Think critically about the responses you're getting. If something we say is not making sense, ask away. If you don't ask, you won't get your answer.

Step 6: You will get a chance to make decisions and take action based on the diagnosis of the plant's condition and treatment. But in the meantime, first gather information about your orchid, allow us to help guide you in analyzing the situation, gather information about what we think might be the issue with your orchid, then evaluate the information you are given, then you can decide and take action. Don't skip steps trying to run before walking.