--- title: "Hiii this is my first post, cause my Phalaenopsis Orchid's roots are…" description: "Hiii this is my first post, cause my Phalaenopsis Orchid's roots are kinda struggling and I haven't been able to figure out why with the Planta doctors, so…" url: "https://getplanta.com/community/JmTUi1iSQr6-tX35luAMXQ/vARZrXxqyzmJPxTF1wsg5a" community: "The Orchid Oasis" author: "Janakhi" published: "2025-04-13T06:38:35.755215Z" language: "en" image: "https://images.getplanta.com/v1/resize/4IKBnZKW7k9pqGfOlOiEzG6biBr6ItD1mQvNJfCunkw/cxsRq_A3Qdirac5E4FPcVA.webp?size=large" --- [Community](https://getplanta.com/community.md) / [The Orchid Oasis](https://getplanta.com/community/JmTUi1iSQr6-tX35luAMXQ.md) # Hiii this is my first post, cause my Phalaenopsis Orchid's roots are… _Posted by Janakhi on 2025-04-13_ Hiii this is my first post, cause my Phalaenopsis Orchid's roots are kinda struggling and I haven't been able to figure out why with the Planta doctors, so hoping someone else might have the answer. I water every 10 days and fertilize once a month, but some of the roots are a bit oddly colored, and in the root pic you can see a white spot thats not mold, but hasn't gotten better. The flowered pic was almost 5 months ago btw. Let me know if anyone has any ideas, thanks! :) ![Attachment 1 of 3](https://images.getplanta.com/v1/resize/4IKBnZKW7k9pqGfOlOiEzG6biBr6ItD1mQvNJfCunkw/cxsRq_A3Qdirac5E4FPcVA.webp?size=large) ![Attachment 2 of 3](https://images.getplanta.com/v1/resize/4IKBnZKW7k9pqGfOlOiEzG6biBr6ItD1mQvNJfCunkw/GmcoBNBFSoik9K8RVJ6CLA.webp?size=large) ![Attachment 3 of 3](https://images.getplanta.com/v1/resize/4IKBnZKW7k9pqGfOlOiEzG6biBr6ItD1mQvNJfCunkw/miGhaNCxQxepJB8EhSQMOQ.webp?size=large) ## 14 comments ### Michelle’s Hobby commented on 2025-04-13 Why do you not have any moss or bark inside your cup? All my orchids have moss and bark mix. #### Janakhi replied on 2025-04-13 Oh lol it got knocked over last night thats how I noticed the rest of the roots, and the bark got cat hairy so I have new bark arriving tomorrow ### Jen commented on 2025-04-13 Are the roots all firm, or are they mushy? When you say they are struggling, do you just mean the variations in color? When you repot will you be putting it into a slotted, ventilated orchid pot? Or back in this glass with no drainage? #### Nurse Gizzy replied on 2025-04-13 There are drainage holes in the glass- took me a minute to see them too #### Jen replied on 2025-04-13 Good grief- not sure how I missed that. Lol. #### Janakhi replied on 2025-04-13 Yeah I did find one slightly mushy one and removed it, it's mostly the color, but a few of some root ends had also turned papery and thin so I cut most of those, I just don't know what caused it. #### Jen replied on 2025-04-13 When you’re watering, just be sure to wait until the media completely dries and the roots are silver not bright green before you water again. That should prevent root rot. ### Nurse Gizzy commented on 2025-04-13 The leaves look healthy:). Maybe once you get the potting mix going she should be great again. Like Jen asked- are the roots mushy? Maybe hold out on watering it until they dry a little with the bark etc #### Janakhi replied on 2025-04-13 Yeah Im hoping the new bark will make it happier, I feel like maybe I just didn't have it in a great choice of bark the first time since (as far as I know) it's care routine is good, and I can't think of anything else that might've upset it. Most of her roots are firm, but I did find one mushy end and a few shriveled papery ones. It was in the Better-Gro Orchid Potting Mix made with fir bark, charcoal, and coarse perlite, and its new bark is 100% New Zealand Pinus radiata bark. #### Nurse Gizzy replied on 2025-04-15 Yes I love that potting mix ### Elliott commented on 2025-04-13 Those roots look perfectly healthy to me, unless they feel mushy. But the discolouration is caused by a lack of light reaching the roots in the middle, and that’s completely normal. Healthy roots can be green/silver, yellow, or white, it all depends on how the root feels. However, there isn’t enough light reaching the plant in the first picture, make sure you get her closer to light. #### Janakhi replied on 2025-04-13 Oh thanks! The pic she has flowers in was a few months ago. In the other pictures the orchid was moved to the lighting that would best show my concerns, but she stays in a different spot under another light. I thought at one point it might be getting too much light cause of some hardly noticeable darkness on the edges and tip of a leaf, so I turned it a bit for less direct light and it seemed to at least not get worse. #### Elliott replied on 2025-04-13 Is she under a grow light/the sun or just a regular fluorescent or LED light? Those pictures look like a regular lamp. If she’s under a regular lamp or artificial light, id get her nearer to the sun. #### Janakhi replied on 2025-04-14 The one she's under is the "Grow Light,40W Ultra-Thin Panel Grow Lights for Indoor Plants,316LEDs Full Spectrum" I got from amazon, one on the left and right on top a little over a foot above her --- _Source: the Planta community (https://getplanta.com). Reading is open to everyone. To post, comment and like, get the Planta app: https://getplanta.com/download_