Question
Orchid
Hi Jim, I rescued my Phalaenopsis from rotting roots about two months ago. It had been planted only in moss. At that time all the flowers fell off and the leaves were getting soft. It is now growing two new flowering stems from the old one but the leaves are continuing to die. I'm afraid that they will all be gone soon and that I will have a leafless but flowering orchid. I don't know what to do. Thank you in advance for your time, Caroline
P.S.: Don't mind the mess in the pic, my house in under reno:)
AnswerHi Caroline,
Forgive me for taking so long to respond to your question, I went away for a few days but forgot to tell the system I would be gone.
From the photo, it looks like there are 3 leaves on one side and only one on the other side. Normally, leaves grow balanced with leafs alternating from side to side. Have one or more leafs fallen off the one side? If so, did you notice a black area at the base of the leaf? If there was, the probable cause for them falling off is a fungus infection. Fungus will grow when some water is left on the leaf over night and if allowed to grow for several days it can cause the leaf to fall off.
The reason the remaining leafs are getting soft is probably due to the moss. Moss can hold a lot of water over a long time, if you have been watering more often than once every 2 weeks, the moss never had time to dry out inbetween waterings. It would be a good idea to repot it into some new orchid media soon.
Hope this has helped.
Jim Kawasaki
San Jose, Ca.
