Question
Hi,  I have 3 phals, all on the same deep windowsill - southern exposure in our Maine winter.  The daytime temp is about 70F and nights a bit cooler.  I water them once a week, taking them to the sink for a good soak-through, with a light feeding every week.  They stand over water for humidity between waterings.

First question:  Two of the orchids have spikes! Exciting!  One of the plants is fat & happy.  The other one seems fine but the leaves are curling so that the bottom of the leaf is facing up.  Two of the leaves have already done this and the third (top) leaf is starting to curl.  What's up with this?  Should I be doing something about it?

Second question:  My thrid plant isn't doing very well  -  the leaves are sortof limp, a bit wrinkly  -  it does have a couple of healthy-looking air roots.  It gets exactly the same treatment as the other two.  I'm guessing maybe it needs to be repotted  -  do you have any other suggestions?  It was standing a bit closer to the window than the other two  -  could it have been too cold?

Thanks for your help!

Answer
Hi Patty,

That's great two of your phals have spikes!  Keep up the good work with them.  Usually, leaves that curl do it downward, not upward.  Have you taken a close look at the leaf tips to see if there is anything such as insects along the top edges?  If the leaf surface is clean and free of any insects, the curling may be due to cold temperatures from being close to the window.  Are the curling leafs on the side closest to the window?  Although the room temperature may be warm, the air temperature next to the window might be 5 to 10 degrees or more cooler, especially at night.  

The third phal could be suffering from being closest to the window but it also could be due to some other causes such as the potting mix having broken down and needs replacement.  Most orchid mixes are good for 2 to 3 years after which they break down and begin causing root loss problems.  Now is not the best time to repot it unless it is in really bad condition, spring is a better time.  

Hope this helped.  If you have other questions or would like more information about the above, write back and I'll try to help.  

Jim Kawasaki
San Jose, Ca.