Question
QUESTION: Hi Jim
We were given an orchid in October and considering that we'd never had one before it was surviving well.  I would water it every other week and it would bud.

But then we came back after Christmas holidays to find that one of the stems had gone black and all the flowers & buds had fallen off.  On the other stems the flowers appear to be drooping.  Also at least 2 leaves have fallen off the plant.  From my internet search I have been able to establish that a probable cause of this would be ethylene gas from a bag of clementines which was standing next to the plant until last week.  We weren't aware that ethylene could affect orchids like this.

What I would like to know is if there is anything that we can do to save the orchid and perhaps revive it?

Many thanks
Myra
(Aarhus, Denmark)


ANSWER: Hi Myra,

Yes, ethylene gas from ripening fruits can be a death sentence for orchid flowers and unopened buds.  For this reason, it is best to keep them at least 9 feet (3 m) apart when they are in the same room.  I do not believe this is what caused the leafs to fall off though.  If there is a blackened area at the base of the leaf, that would indicate that a fungus is what caused it to fall off.  Fungus will appear and grow on the leaf is water is allowed to remain on it over night.  For this reason, it is best to water in the morning to allow enough time for water droplets to evaporate before night fall.  

If nothing else has gone wrong with it, it may go on and live a long life.  

Hope this has helped.

Jim Kawasaki
San Jose, Ca.



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Jim
Thanks for your response.
The plant has now lost all of its flowers :0(

I have checked the base of the leaves and I have noticed that they do look black so I think you are right that this was the issue with the leaves.  There is one leaf left which does look very healthy and green and from what I can tell it isn't black on its base yet.

What do you advise that I do with the plant now?  Should I trim it down in any way or just leave it and water every other week.  Will it re-bud at any point and is there anything that I can do to encourage it to do this?  Or will the ethylene gas have killed the plant completely in the long run?

Many thanks
Myra


Answer
Hi Myra,

Forgive me for taking so long to write back, had gone away for a few days for some R&R with my wife.  

As long as the remaining leaf is okay along with the rest of the orchid plant, it should recover over time.  This will take a little work on your part though, giving it some TLC along the way.  

Since it is mid winter in Denmark, place it in a warm location (above 18C) where it will be in bright shade.  Try to maintain humidity above 50% with some light air movement around it.  Water it when the potting media becomes almost dry.  You can try lightly misting it in the morning to help increase humidity but only mist a little.  

In several months, if things go well, you may see a new leaf emerge from the very top.  As temperatures warm in the spring, you should see some new roots start to appear along with some of the older roots restart their growth (root tips will turn green at this time).  

Although it may take two years before it will produce blooms again, it might surprise you with some in late winter to early spring.  Be on the look out for a new stem that is all green to reddish green, roots are more greyish with a small green tip.  

Hope this has helped save it.  Good luck.

Jim Kawasaki
San Jose, Ca.