Resha
I was gifted this orchid about three weeks ago. Recently, I’ve noticed that some of its roots have started to turn purple/blue. Does anybody know what might be causing this and how I can fix it?
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I was gifted this orchid about three weeks ago. Recently, I’ve… | The Orchid Oasis 🇺🇸 | Planta-community
4 kommentarer
MeasomerPiIm not really sure. It looks like either root burn from over fertilizing/ hard water or reaction to high light. I’m kinda leaning to high light. But in my experience that typically manifests in the actively growing roof tips, and not localized to a mature portion of the root. However I’m seeing some rosy tint on the leaves so not outside the realm of possibilities. If it is light, watch your leave to make sure they aren’t in danger of burning. Phals like high light but not direct. So it shouldn’t be an issue if there is no direct light. If it was root burn, I would assume multiple roots would be affected. Make sure you are not exceeding the manufacturer’s recommendations when feeding your plant. But these are only guesses. I would be interested in Jen’s thoughts on this. Hopefully she’ll stop by and say hi!
3 gillningar- Jen
Those would all be good guesses in my opinion too. I’ve never seen an orchid root take on this color. Root burn generally has a brown or black color, and gets kind of hardened. Does this root feel smooth or hard and rough? Are the flowers on your plant purple by any chance Resha? If so, then maybe the damage on the root is just appearing this color due to the excess of anthocyanin. Is it getting direct sun? How are the roots in the pot? You have some damage on the other roots shown as well, and they look a little dry. But the leaves look plump and glossy, so I suspect that the roots in the pot are ok. Mysterious. Best guess on advice would be to watch the direct sun, potentially lessen the fertilizer if you feel like you may have been over doing it, and keep an eye on the blue/pink/purple root. If it seems like it’s spreading or moving up toward the stem of the orchid, I’d trim it away. I don’t know of any fungal or bacterial infection that looks like that, but why chance it if it looks like it’s active.
1 gilla - Resha
It’s strange, the discolored part of the root is hard and rough, and it seems to have decayed a bit. The flowers are purple, and everything else with the plant appears healthy, but it’s just this specific part of the root that's concerning. The plant is getting full sunlight, though not directly, and while some roots are in the pot, others are spilling over the sides. Since I haven’t used any fertiliser since receiving the plant, I’m quite puzzled by this issue. It looks like I might need to start with some trial and error to figure it out.
1 gilla - Jen
The flowers being purple as well as the additional rosey tint on the stem leads me to believe that the color of the damage on this root is due to the anthocyanin. What is causing the damage, however, may just be hard water if you aren’t fertilizing at all. Hmmm… let us know if you figure it out. (Also, don’t expect this root to ‘heal’- determining what fixes the issue will only be seen by whether more roots exhibit this, or if new roots that grow don’t show signs.)
1 gilla