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Hi from Eugene, Oregon! Seeking orchid advice

Discussion in 'Introduce Yourself' started by Molly, Mar 5, 2017.

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  1. Mar 5, 2017 #1
    Molly

    Molly New Member

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    Hello! My name is Molly I'm living in Eugene, OR. I'm happy to have found this forum, I am looking for some great advice on my phalaenopsis.

    My boyfriend gave me an orchid almost 2 months ago (left) and I took one home from my work a few days ago because she looked sad (right), and obviously righty is in rough shape. Lefty seems like its happy, I have them both under a little LED red and blue desktop light. Righty was over watered and was near a coldish door in the greenhouse I work at, there was a light on it though but it was not the best spot. When I got it all of it's flowers and buds had already fallen off, the leaves looked okay and the roots from what I could see were decent but needed to be trimmed. The leaves are not soft or super droopy, but have started to yellow from the center. It looked like it was getting worse so I decided to repot it last night, I've had it at home for maybe 3 days. The moss it was in was totally compacted and long over due for changing, it was a mass with the roots so I removed what I could and then put it back into it's container with much less moss. I thought it might have crown rot so I sprinkled a small amount of cinnamon in the yellow spot and left it on there since yesterday. I also trimmed the roots and there are quite a few left despite some soft dead ones. I have some left over orchid bark I used on my other guy but I didn't know which medium would be better so I kept the moss for now. The moss I also made sure was not sufficating the roots anymore and left it moist. I'm afraid it will lose both of it's leaves, especially that super yellow one (they seem sturdy right now though). I plan to let it dry out but I need some advice on how to care for it in this delicate state: the amount of light it needs, the next time I should water it, what's happening exactly and if it could survive? Am I missing anything? Is moss or the orchid bark better? Has anyone else had one look like this and what happened? It is in an East facing window with a small blue and red LED grow light on it for 10 hours, has good airflow and my other orchid sitting in the same spot I think is doing well. Thank you so much! I am excited to learn and hopefully bring her back. :)
     

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  2. Mar 5, 2017 #2
    Kipper

    Kipper CoffeeCoffeeCoffee... Supporting Member

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    Hi Molly,
    Welcome to the forum. I have Phals. in both moss and bark depending on where I'm growing them. If I were you, I would repot the one you potted in moss though and put it in bark. This will make it easier for you to judge the moisture on both because since you are growing them together they will dry out at approx. the same rate. The one with the yellow leaf def. looks like it was over watered. They want to be moist. Water well and do not water again until the medium just begins to dry out. If you have a saucer under the pots, do not let water sit in the saucer unless you put pebbles in the saucer so that the pot itself does not sit in water. You say they are in an east facing window. Does the direct sun hit the leaves? Phals are fairly low light plants and will sunburn easily. When the light is brightest, hold your hand about 8 or 10 inches from the plant. you should see a shadow with very undefined edges. If you see a shadow distinct enough to see clear fingers then there is probably a little too much light. What are the temps right by the window where you have them at night? In the winter they can handle temps as low as 50's on occasion but are not going to be very happy with that. They prefer a low of 60 or 65 at night in the winter.
    I wish you luck with them, and be very careful. A couple of Phals. is how I got started in this obsession and now I can't walk past an orchid without my eyes glazing over... Just sayin' Kipper
     
  3. Mar 6, 2017 #3
    tong tsu shi

    tong tsu shi my first word was Masdevallia

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    I am not the person to ask about Phals.
    Maybe Masdes.