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Something bad is happening with this orchid. But I don’t know what… | The Orchid Oasis | Planta community

Amy

Something bad is happening with this orchid. But I don’t know what and why. The newest bulb is starting to discolor and turn brown and soft. Just two weeks ago it was doing really well and putting on a lot of growth, green, and firm. The older bulbs are firm and look like they are plumper than they used to be months ago. When I got this “grocery store orchid” earlier this spring it only had two bulbs - the flowering bulb and an older bulb and very little roots. After I repotted it, new roots and a new bulb started growing and the old bulbs never plumped back up, which is not unexpected. Now the new bulb is dying and I don’t know why. No changes have been made to the plants living conditions. No pests observed. Should I cut the dying bulb off? What’s happening? Pictures from today during watering when I noticed the bulb discoloration.

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8 comments

  1. Amy

    Here are pictures from early Oct and from early August (pic with the white circle) to show how wrinkled the old bulbs that look plumper now.

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  2. Waspinator

    That's a sign of possible rot. Either you got water in between the leaves and it never dried out, or the roots stayed too wet. Since oncidium roots are so tiny and tend to die back after repotting, it's easy to end up with lots of dead root material that then decomposes in the pot

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    • Amy

      Thank you. Do you recommend I cut out the rotting bulb or is the whole plant a goner? I would like to save the plant if I can

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    • Jen

      Totally agree with the above. If the newer bulb is not just discolored, but starting to get soft- that’s infection. If you happened to notice it starting from the top and moving down, it was likely from water getting caught in the leaf folds. If you noticed it going up from the base, then it’s likely an issue with the roots. Either way you’re gonna wanna remove that bulb. You will get a better idea of what the problem might be and how bad it is if you unpot it. You may see the infection starting on the next closest bulb once you remove the sick one and its roots.

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    • Jen

      You’ll also be able to tell if the roots coming from the older bulbs are rotting as well and be able to remove them before the infection runs up into those bulbs.

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    • Waspinator

      I agree; if it's rot, removing that section is the best thing you can do for the plant. Remember to sterilize your trimmers and make sure the exposed cut stays dry until it can callous.

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    • Amy

      Thank you. I’ve cut off the old bulb, cleaned the plant, put cinnamon powder at the cut and repotted the plant in new bark. Fingers crossed it recovers. Thanks so much for your advice

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