Growing potted Orchids help, please?
3 weeks ago I received a potted Cymbidium Orchid plant, since that time the plant seems to be looking worse. I was hoping for some advice.
The Orchid is sitting in the pot it came in, which appears to be a plastic pot nested inside of a decorative shell. The decorative shell/pot does not seem to have any vents for drainage. I cannot lift the plastic pot out the shell to see if it drains. However, I would hope that it would not be sold in a pot which was not conductive for growing it.
I have placed the plant by a window which has bright light (but not usually direct light) for most of the day.
I have been watering the plant about 9 oz of water (a normal water glass) 1-2 times a week, however the top inch of the soil always feels dry to me.
The problems: So far 4 of the blooms (all on one stem) have slowly shriveled and fallen off. The stem itself has started to turn yellow. On the second stem, 2 orchids have started to shrivel, however 4 remain healthy looking and I’d like to keep it that way.
Besides letting me know if you see any problems in my care of the orchids and things I should be doing differently, I’d appreciate it if you could let me know if any pruning is needed for orchids to keep them growing and producing new blooms.
Thank you!!
First of all you need to get the plastic pot out of the pot with no drainage. Your local nursery should carry orchid pots. They have holes all around them since the roots often like to grow out of them. Your orchid should NOT be in soil but either a light brown moss or a bark medium. The flowers are probably at the end of their bloom. It’s normal for them to dry up and fall off. When all the blooms are gone you can cut the ‘spike’ off as close to the base of the plant as you can. Get "Orchid Food" only and feed every time you water. Follow the directions and you’ll see the mixture is a very weak one. The light you are giving it sounds perfect. AS for watering. Assuming everything else is correct it, only water it when it is quite dry. You can tell this by it’s weight. Notice how it feels when it’s just been watered. I fill a bucket with fertilized water and slowly submerge the pot until there are no air bubbles coming to the surface. Take it out and let it drain completely. I drain mine in the shower. Put it back in the same sunny spot. Keep this up whether it has flowers or not. They generally bloom 2-3 times a year. Good luck!!
The roots may be rotting if there is no drainage in the bottom of the pot. You need to put it in a pot that has enough drainage.
Mix up some miracle grow according to the directions on the package and water it with that. It may needs some fertilizer. Only fertilize ever few months.
Water only when the soil is almost all the way dry and water in the morning.
Oh god – get it out of that pot without drainage! Number one cause of death for any house plant.
You have too much faith in the stores to provide ideal growing pots for orchids. They will package it any way that sells. If it dies and you need to buy another from them, they simply see that as a bonus. They often sell the orchids in old media and then just add fresh stuff to the top and the sides so that it looks like it’s all fresh.
I would bet the roots are being damaged and rotten by the water that it is sitting in. It is a bad sign if the pseudobulbs are shrivelling. This suggests that the plant is not getting water. Not because there isn’t plenty of water there but the roots are damaged and it can’t suck it up.
It needs a good re-potting and all the dead roots trimmed away. This is the number one priority before you consider feeding or changing the light. Pot it up with bark into a small pot. Orchids like to feel snug in their pots, although there should be a small amount of room for new growth for a Cymbidium