Black & dry crown? - Orchid Board

orchidlauren · #1 12-21-2019, 01:54 PM

New orchids has dry and black crown? Im pretty sure its not the right terminology for “crown” but its the area where the roots are connected to- feel free to correct me. I have 2 orchids with this that still show growth but it looks quite unattractive. One of my past orchids with this completely dropped all of its leaves. Is this normal or is it something I need to treat asap? And I know that the orchid in the photo looks horrible- its how I got it

orchidlauren · #2 12-21-2019, 02:08 PM

im assuming crown rot?

Roberta · #3 12-21-2019, 02:16 PM

The "crown" is the little pocket where the leaves emerge. You don't show that in the picture, assuming that is fine. Your plant has lost most of its roots (probably because it was in wet, stale, airless medium) but has some roots that look at least somwehat viable. Pot it up in fresh medium (sphagnum or small bark, which ever fits your watering style), stake it so that it doesn't wobble since those few roots aren't enough to hold it firmly, and it will very likely produce some new roots. Just be patient.

Orchidking · #4 12-21-2019, 11:34 PM

what you are calling the crown is the rootzone. Can't tell why most of the roots have been removed but there is no rot which is good. The stem which you think is ugly can look a lot worse, I would even guess the black can be washed off.
That part of the plant should be buried in some media to keep it from drying out though so should not even be visible. Use spagnum if you want, I would never recommend it to a beginner though.

Good beginner mediums are bark, clay pebbles and perlite.

Since the plant has lost most its roots it should be kept humid and sprayed daily otherwise it will probably slowly die.

If it can be kept moist but not as moist as spagnum moss then it might produce new roots above the ones that have died.

It's in much better condition than other plants that have been said to be saveable so it's just a matter of patience and the right media.

Will be a minimum of a year with the right care before you have a handful of roots on that plant again

aliceinwl · #5 12-22-2019, 01:18 AM

I second Roberts’s advice. If I’m understanding correctly, you have another orchid that has dropped all its leaves and lost its roots? If there’s green tissue left on the stem, there’s a slim chance of recovery, but that plant is more than likely a goner. Dropping all of the leaves is usually a signal that there is stem and/or crown rot involved.

If the pictured plant were mine, I’d stake it and bury it in the media so that the top of top of the blackened root zone is just above the surface. I have a bias towards bark because that’s what I’ve had the most success with. Put it in a clear pot and heavily mist the base of the stem daily (keep water off the leaves and out of the crown). Water the whole pot when the bark starts looking dry. The misting of the stem seems to trigger root generation in short order for me. Keep it warm and bright without direct sun. I usually see the start of a new root within a month.

orchidlauren · #6 12-22-2019, 11:04 AM

I’ve been keeping it staked and misted daily like said because of the loss of roots, I keep it in a clear drainage pot with bark aswell. The reason why I took it out for a picture was because I put it in a clay pebble mix which I felt wasn’t holding the humidity it needed. The crown itself (now that I know the difference lol) is completely fine. The previous orchid that dropped all of its leaves had yellowed on its stem but I can try to recover it. Sorry for the confusion between the rootzone and the crown, I tried searching up the anatomy and it didn't show.

aliceinwl · #7 12-24-2019, 12:59 AM

A big reason not to mist the leaves of Phalaenopsis is that the water tends to run down the leaves and pool in the crown and leaf bases. This pooled water can lead to fatal crown and stem rot. In the wild, Phalaenopsis tend to grow side ways (not straight up) so they don’t have this problem.