Heya! New orchid owner here! I have some questions with mine, they seem decently healthy! Though the plant is potted in sphagnum moss, I immediately noticed that some roots were dried out. Do I clip them? Also, one of the leaves has a small crack in it, is there anything I should do to support it? Thanks!!🌸
Orchids are often dehydrated from improper care in stores. Give it a 10-20 minute bottom-watering soak and some of the wrinkled roots should perk up. If they still look super dry after that, go ahead and clip them. Stores often have weird soil situations for shipping, so once the flowers are done, you should repot it (it can return to the same pot; just check for root rot, remove any dead roots, and make sure it has a proper soil mix. (Orchid bark is the usual main soil. Sphagnum is often added to help increase moisture retention. Any mix of the two can work, it just comes down to your watering preferences.)) Never water with ice cubes; some care tags say to do that, but it's wrong and will hurt the plant. These are epiphytes (so they like to cling to trees in the wild), so they need really good drainage and air around the roots. When watering, avoid getting any water in between the leaves (the crown), and dry it if you splash there. The split in the leaf was likely caused by dehydration. The leaf is still useful to the plant, but it'll always have that scar. You can leave it until it naturally dies off or remove it for aesthetic reasons.
3 likes
Love all the above. Great advice! I will add that I don’t like to soak plants that are potted in all sphagnum. In my growing conditions, it stays too wet for far too long. I top water those guys. I suggest you watch you plant to see how long it stays wet after soaking. green roots = don’t water silver or white roots = watering time If it drys out reasonably fast (7 to 10 days in most cases) then keep up the soaking. If not, adjust the frequency and/or method accordingly. Good luck!
3 likesYeah i agree. I was thinking a one-time soak to help rehydrate it, then normal top watering after that. Bottom watering is overkill most of the time
2 likes Thanks!
0 likes Very helpful! Thanks so much!
0 likes
I’d also advise more light.
0 likes