Is this a keiki? š³ About a month ago, I noticed a new pair of leaves started growing in between the 2nd & 3rd leaves of my momās moth orchid instead of growing on top. If that wasnāt odd enough, theyāre also growing in facing the opposite direction. Iāve never seen a keiki before, so I might just be being hopeful. I know the angles in the photos are confusing, but I tried my best. š
It's hard to tell from the pics. But does kinda look like it's just random coming off the stems
2 Likes Right?? Itās weird. Btw, thank you! I was hoping one of the pros would answer. š
1 Like š I'm definitely not an orchid pro. Just dipping my toes into it. I'm more familiar with bromeliad as far as epiphytes. I really wanna flask culture some orchids though. If it starts to grow it's own roots it's definitely one.
2 Likes Youāre definitely one of the pros Iāve seen on here! Your collection is crazy exotic, and youāre an active & very knowledgeable Planta user. š
3 Likes Aww thank you š
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Looks like a keiki to me. Has it sprouted any roots?
3 Likes Omg, stop! Really?! No, it doesnāt have any roots.
0 Likes I donāt think itās typical for keikis to sprout above a leaf but I donāt know what else it could be. Phals are monopodial orchids so no branching. Wait to separate from the mother until you have at least 2ā of leaves and 2ā of roots. Hopefully Jen will be able to comment. It seems like she has a good amount of experience with phal keikis.
3 Likes I didnāt think it would sprout there either. Thatās why Iām so unsure. Thank you so much for your help & opinion! Letās see if Jen jumps in! š¤
1 LikeOh! Hi! Yes- it seems to be a basel keiki to me as well. They CAN sprout between leaves, although, itās more common to sprout at the base. You can leave the mother and baby plant attached or separate them as the Pi indicated above- when there are enough roots to support the new orchid. The only potential issue I see going forward is that if you decided to keep them together, the new roots would need to be sort of guided toward the medium around the lower leaves of the original plant. No biggie- just something to watch out for.
3 Likes Thank you so much for your help, Jen! Iāll start looking into basel keikis now. Iām gonna be a Grammy, yāall! š„¹š
1 Like