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Hi! I have an orchid I got not too long ago (probably 2-3 months)… | The Orchid Oasis 🇺🇸 | Planta-community

Plantlife

Hi! I have an orchid I got not too long ago (probably 2-3 months) that I just want to make sure I’m doing the right things for! I’m not sure what type it is, (it’s flowers were white when it had them if that helps any) some of its roots seem to have turned brown and a little crispy but I’m terrified of over watering so I’ve just let it be. It had 2 stems with flowers when I got it but after a long while they died so I just cut the stems so it would hopefully bloom again! Only one stem survived but I’ll take it. I haven’t repotted it but I’m honestly really afraid of it, orchids just seem so intimidating! I would be more than happy to answer any questions and any and all advice is greatly appreciated!

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1 gilla 12 kommentarer

12 kommentarer

  1. panda

    It's a Phalaenopsis orchid. No way to really get more specific than that unless it comes with a grower tag that has the specific species listed (which big box stores rarely have). The brown roots on the top are probably dead but that's not a huge issue as long as it has a good root system under the media. It looks like it is in a clear inner pot, so you can pop it out to take a look.

    2 gillningar
    • Plantlife

      Yea I don’t remember it having a tag since I usually keep those just in case, I did lift it up to look at its roots and they looked pretty big and green (maybe even a little yellow so I might have to look and see what normal roots look like so I can see if I need to fix something)

      0 gillningar
  2. panda

    Regarding the spikes, sometimes spikes die back as soon as the flowers drop, sometimes they hang around for a bit after, and sometimes they rebloom. It just depends on how the orchid is feeling lol. Either way is nothing to worry about. Some people cut spikes right after they are done blooming even if they haven't died back because they only want brand new spikes from the stem, other people let the orchid decide what it wants to do and only cut them once they die back. Up to you!

    1 gilla
    • Plantlife

      Okay I think I can do that lol. Flowering species always scare me, even my two hibiscus I have (which are thriving in every other way) won’t give me a flower

      0 gillningar
  3. panda

    I would recommend looking up MissOrchidGirl on youtube. She has a whole series of videos on beginner Phalaenopsis care, including one on repotting. I totally get it being intimidated, it always is the first time or two. I found that watching someone do it (or even a few different videos) helped me better understand what I was supposed to do and made it less intimidating when I first started learning about orchids. MissOrchidGirl is very popular -- she's not the end all be all of orchid experts but I find that her videos are very good when getting started. She explains things clearly and at a good pace.

    1 gilla
    • Plantlife

      Thank you I’ll definitely check that out!

      0 gillningar
  4. Waspinator

    Your orchid looks healthy and happy! The dry crispy roots are dead from either age or dehydration, so you can cut them (sometimes they get so dry that they pull off easily). The visible live roots look perfect (you can tell if they're getting dehydrated because they'd wrinkle. Don't worry if that happens with long aerial roots; it's hard to keep them hydrated in the open air.)

    1 gilla
    • Plantlife

      Okay that makes sense, would you say I should water it more to try to help or just let it be?

      0 gillningar
    • Jen

      You should water when your green roots go to that pretty silver color that indicated they are dry. If they are still bright and green, no need to water.

      1 gilla
    • Plantlife

      Okay thank you!

      1 gilla
  5. panda

    Don't worry about the root color -- yellow just means it hasn't been exposed to much light. If you're worried about the roots, go based on feel. When you do repot, gently squeeze each root. If it is mushy and squishes open, it's rotting. If it's hollow and papery, it's dead. Those can all be cut off. If it's firm, leave it alone, regardless of color -- those roots are alive.

    2 gillningar
    • Plantlife

      That makes me feel a lot better! I was really afraid it was starting to get root root but touching them they felt okay still!

      1 gilla