Phalaenopsis keiki on dying spike
 

I’ve been putting any green spikes I remove from my Phalaenopsis in water. A few have tried to make keikis below the waterline, but these have always rotted in short order. I have one, however, that initiated a keiki further up the spike above the water.

The keiki has two leaves about an inch long each that are still at the soft supple stage, and no sign of roots. The spike it’s growing off of is now browning. I’m assuming it’s still getting some water via wicking. I’m going to be out of town for awhile. I’m wondering if I should leave it as is (dead spike in water with the keiki coming off the top), if I should move or to an ICU type set-up within a closed container with some damp sphagnum, or try to rig something where the spike will still be in water and also have some damp moss around the base of the keiki?

Has anyone had success getting a rootless Phal keiki, not attached to the parent plant/any source of reserves, established?

It's possible, but difficult, as the plant has no water-uptake mechanisms, but can still lose it through normal transpiration.

If the spike is dying, the water supply to the keiki will fail as well.

If this is a "special plant" and you're willing to go to extremes to save it, I'd remove the keiki from the spike and do the following:

1. soak the keiki in a good stimulant product.
2. briefly dip it in a 1% bleach solution to remove any pathogens on the surface
3. nestle it into loose, moist sphagnum in a sealed container, kept warm and shady.

That'll give you a saturated air environment to slow desiccation with a reduced fear of rot - the sphagnum should be self-protective of that.

Then hope and pray it can grow roots before it desiccated to death.

It’s not special, but I’d still like to try since there’s nothing to lose. I do have kelp max. Should I soak it overnight? Should I remove it from the spike or just trim the spike down some? The spike tissue is yellow but not totally desiccated; I’m not sure if the keiki is still absorbing water and nutrients from it at this point, but I’m leaving for eight days tomorrow and imagine it will be dead with the keiki in decline by the time I get back if I do nothing.

Go ahead and soak it overnight. Completely separate or with a small piece of spike makes no difference.