Welcome to Orchid Board.
If they are Phals, and they most likely are, they don't need bright south sun. They are a fairly low light plant. Without pics, it is hard to say for sure, but the plant sounds dehydrated. I am also assuming you bought some orchid bark. New bark dries out quickly. Your plant likely came from a pot of soaking wet moss as seems to be very common for Phals when they are newly obtained. So the roots would be suffering from a drastic change of very wet-which will cause root rot, to the other extreme of new dry open media that is likely dry before 2 weeks. Also 1/4 cup of water is not enough. It should be flushed thoroughly under the tap at the sink so water is pouring thru the pot. But not getting into the crown of the leaves. Then let all excess drain out and leave it until it is nearly dry but not bone dry,to water again. If you are fertilizing, you can flush it well like that and then water with 1/4 cup of fertilizer water, but it should be a weak solution, 1/2 to 1/4 the dosage recommended on the fertilizer package.
There is a thread here on the skewer method, if you aren't familiar. It is a handy way to tell when the orchid is approaching dryness and needing water. Just use an inexpensive thin bamboo kebab skewer. Place down into the bottom and near centre of the pot. Leave it there and pull it out to see how wet or dry it is before watering. Replace into the same place so you aren't always poking holes in roots. Pull it back from the bright sun in the window. Especially until it can recover and grow some more roots.
Any mushy or hollow roots can be removed. when potting, make sure the crown is above the media and that the plant is solid and stable in the pot. Don't use a pot that is a lot bigger than the root base. It will take too long to dry and cause root rot. I hope this helps.
There is also a thread called the Phal Abuse ends Here:
The Phal abuse ends here.
---------- Post added at 09:22 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:21 PM ----------
Quote:
Originally Posted by Orchid Whisperer
Hi Jenny
When you say that you repotted into mulch/soil, do you mean orchid bark? Orchid bark is easily purchased at big-box home improvement stores (Home depot, etc.). The pot should have good drainage holes.
I recommend that you water differently. Each time you water, run as much water as you want through the orchid bark and around the roots. Water at the sink. More water actually gets rid of excess salt buildup. Typically I run water through the pot for roughly 15 seconds per plant. Although less frequent watering is better than watering too often, twice a month is probably not often enough. You want the bark to be almost dry, but not quite, before watering again. This is usually equal to once or twice a week, but can vary depending on how the plant is potted and because of environmental factors.
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