Question
QUESTION: I received an orchid from home depot in the summer. I am not sure but I think it is a Phaleonopsis. I admit I have not taken care of it very well. when i got it it had 3 stems now one of them is dried out completly and the other 2 seem to be blooming again....the leaves are very soft and look very sick...i have never repotted a plant so i do not know what to do...is there anyone I can take my plant to like a plant help center or something I mean I will pay someone to repott and tell me what I have to do to properly take care of the plant...I do not want to lose the plant it was given for a very special ocassion.. thank you please help

ANSWER: Paula, your plant defintely needs repotting as it has root rot.  Most of the plants I have purchased at Home Depot need to be repotted as soon as they go out of bloom as they have not been cared for properly. Home Depot does not usually have plant people who know much about the needs of orchids and, rather than trying to grow them well, they either trash the unsold plants or put them on sale.  Your limp leaves mean you have root rot which you can observe open unpotting your plant.  Home Depot sells orchid potting mix so if you decide to attempt repotting, you can purchase a bag of potting mix and I can take you through the steps to unpot and repot your plant.  Alternatively, you could look in the yellow pages under "orchids" to find the nearest orchid grower to help with the repotting.  If you can't locate one, I can help you find one if you let me know where you live.

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QUESTION: i live in norridge, IL , but any chicago or evanston location will also work for me

Answer
Paula, there is a place you should get to know.  It is Oak Hill Gardens in West Dundee.  Their address is 37W550 Binnie Road.  North of the Tollway, if you take Randall Road you will come to an intersetion at Woodman's grocery.  That intersection is where Randall Road intersects with Binnie Road.  Take Binnie west about a half mile and you should see the greenhouses on your right, then turn into the drive. They will do the repotting for you and provide a lot of good advice as well. I know Greg and Liese Butler and you can let them know I sent you.  This has been a family owned business for generations and they are very friendly and helpful people.  Their entire business is the orchid business.  While there, take a tour of the greenhouses and you will see some fantastic orchids.

Another interesting place is Orchids by Hausermann.  A much larger operation, they have open house the weekends of Febraury 27 - March 1 and March 6-8.  Located at 2N134 ADDISON ROAD, Villa Park, IL.  Those weekends they have demonstrations, free food, and lots of orchids on display and for sale.  They are, by far the largest orchid dealer in the midwest. Because of their size, you're not likely to get the personal attention you will get at Oak Hill Garden.