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oldmangroot

Miltassia? No leaves?

10 years ago

Hi all,

i got this plant off the discount rack at lowes. It's NOID, and was labeled oncidium. Based on the flower I think it's a miltassia? Anyway, when I got it, it went downhill fast. Leaves turned yellow and died one at a time. Eventually I realized that under the nice chunks of coconut husk and clay pellets, there was peat at the bottom of the pot. I unpotted it, and attempted to mount it to a hunk of coconut husk I had, with some spaghnum wadded up under the roots. Then the last flower and leaves died and fell off, leaving just pseudobulbs. Is there any hope for this plant? It's been hanging in part sun, being watered maybe three or four times a week. There was a new growth, but it seems to have stalled or stopped. see attached pictures. What should I do? Repot? Wait? The bulbs are still green, but seem to be wrinkling all the more, slowly. No signs of growth.

Comments (12)

  • 10 years ago

    Broward county. I haven't seen any growth in the last month. Would spag and bag help here?

  • 10 years ago

    For future reference, it's helpful if you tell us where in the world you are. I realize Broward County is Florida, but some of our forum experts are in other parts of the world which makes giving good advice difficult if we don't know where you are.

    I've never done the spagh and bag method, but others swear by it. It does look very dehydrated and I would definitely take it off the mount. I have had success bringing plants back to life who had roots that looked as dry as yours, but the bulbs were not as shriveled up. I would definitely try to water it more frequently and wait to see if new growth might begin in the spring. Perhaps at this point hydrating the roots and bulbs is the best you can do while it rests a bit.

    oldmangroot thanked suzabanana (6b Boston/N. Shore)
  • 10 years ago

    Thanks, will do. I usually include location info, but I was in a rush.

    I appreciate the advice, everyone!

  • 10 years ago

    I think that as long as the pseudo bulbs are still green you have a good chance.

    Your photo is showing what I would call the back of the plant. Even on a healthy plant there are normally a few bulbs similar to the ones in the lower right of the photo. When repotting similar plants, I would typically cut off the smaller older ones to the back. I do this to make more room in the pot and to re center the plant to look more balanced. When I do this I throw the cut off section in an empty pot and set it aside. I would guess about 75% of the time the cut off piece will start to grow from a dormant eye.

    If it were my plant I would cut off the 3 oldest bulbs in one clump. Repot the plant with the cut against the edge of the pot. The roots in the photo look dead, but again that is the back of the plant. If there are white roots on the other side, water them every few days depending on how fast it dries. If there are no white roots it doesn't really matter how much water you give it it won't be able to absorb any of it.

    Look for new growth from the same bulb that has the flower spike. It may take a while so be patient. If you want to try a mount, tie the cut off piece to a slab and wait for some growth to start. I have never liked the sphag in a bag thing, doesn't seem to work for me.

    PS. That's a nice looking pitcher plant in the background there.

    oldmangroot thanked James _J
  • 10 years ago

    Isn't that a new growth on the left side of the plant?

    oldmangroot thanked Henry Khachikian
  • 10 years ago

    Thanks! I seem to do much better with pitcher plants than orchids.

    I potted it up last night. There were some better looking roots off the newest bulb, but the vast majority look like what you see in the picture. I soaked the plant for maybe ten minutes, and they all became much more pliable. For what you see in the picture are dead, not just older, then the thing really has few to no roots.

    The new growth stalled. The tips of the newest leaves on it died, and since then I've seen no new growth in the last two or three weeks. The new growth was on an older bulb, not the one to most recently flower.

    I'll take another look at it this weekend. Thanks all for your advice. It's a really pretty plant and I'd love to save it.

  • 10 years ago

    By the way, is my ID correct? This is some sort of miltassia hybrid?

  • 10 years ago

    Yes, your plant is some sort of Milt but could be treated like an Oncidium.

    Don't worry about the dried roots. This plant likes moisture and should not have been mounted. They like humidity. They like cool temps in the fall.

    Pot it and give it some bright light. When the weather warms you should start to see new growths appear...if you are lucky.

    Your plant had a bad beginning. The most you can do is give it a try and see if it starts to make some new growths. With the weather warming, it should happen.

    As long as those bulbs are green they are alive. Even if they have no roots, they will act as support to the newer growths.

    Jane

  • 10 years ago

    Most likely it's Mtssa Charles M. Fitch 'Zumi'. Don't worry too much, it's pretty easy to revive. Pot with mostly bark and a little bit of Sphagnum. As soon as the flower drops, it will send out a new growth.



    oldmangroot thanked Saleem Baksh
  • 10 years ago

    Thank you all for your help, and the ID!

  • 10 years ago

    Your pitcher plant is insane!! It has like a million pitchers!

    oldmangroot thanked kelli
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