Question
Phal spike or keiki
Hi Wayne King,
How are you?
One of my Phal has had crown root problem. So, I keep it away from
others.
And I applied fungicide to stop it.
I kept it in my room with a fan running 24 hrs. It has stopped rotting.
But, two day later, I saw something some out from stem. I don't know whether it is flower spike or Keiki. I've attached photo.
One thing is that this phal never flower before & these day are a bit cooler plus on the fan for hours.
If it is flower spike , can I start feed with bloom fertilizer?
How to identify spike or keiki in general as for me both look very similar?
Thanks in advance,
Nwe Lay
AnswerI am fine. Thank you for asking. Also, thank you for the picture. You are right that at an early stage (such as that shown in your picture) the newly emerging tissue does not lend itself to identification. I could be wrong, but, because this is in the root zone, it might well be a newly emerging root. It appears that your plant has pushed itself upward in its pot such that the newly emerging root zone is above the potting mix. I would add potting mix to cover the roots. If it turns out to be a flower spike or new growth instead, it should continue to emerge even with the additional potting mix. There is no need for additional fertilizer at this time. You may need to repot if the root zone is now above the edge of the pot. If this is the case, you may need a deeper pot-- especially if most or all of the roots in the pot are healthy.
