It could be, the roots on the surface in the photo are dead and should be clipped off. The roots below the surface may be fine.

The potting mix looks okay on the surface again below the surface could be different. The plant looks a bit dry. Looks like it need a good soaking

Hi,

I place 4 ice cubes on the surface once a week. I don‘t fertilize. The mix could be several months old. it was a gift and the roots came the same way when it was gifted, as the picture shows.

I didn’t look at the inner potted roots because i didnt want to disturb the plants. i also don’t think there is an inner pot. its in a ceramic pot.

Cut off the dried up roots and felt the soil which was damp not wet. So I didn't do anything else. The trunk (?) felt loose. if i were to pull on it, I’m pretty sure the entire plant will come out of the soil. Is this normal?

Dazed, This may get a bit involved, because I see several things that you need to address. I'm involved with several projects of my own right now (Christmas seems to do that to us once a year, doesn't it) I'm willing to discuss a few pointers with you, but it may take several sessions. I'm willing to invest the time if you are.

First, need to know where you live, and how long you have had the plant in question, and whether it has ever bloomed for you. From what information you have supplied already, I'm going to say you are in a fairly large city, in a high rise apt. Need to know if you're in the cold north, or more temperate south.

Right now I'm saying that you probably have had the plant for some time,

With these questions answered, I suggest you knock the plant out of its pot, and find out for sure what is inside the pot. You say the potting soil feels damp...damp on the surface, or damp down in the center of the pot. Why all these crazy questions?

I don't believe a healthy well cared for Phalaenopsis plant if watered thoroughly and left in a reasonably high humidity atmosphere, completely without water for three weeks would reach a point of having leaves yellow and drop off. The plant would probably be pretty limp and droopy looking, but there probably would be no permanent damage to roots, leaves, or plant. A good watering, and a few weeks of proper care should bring it back to normal. However, if the plant was struggling, and had been struggling for some time, three weeks of severe overwatering probably would be enough to produce a severe case of root rot, loss of leaves, roots, and possibly the plant.

Dazed, be sure you have a supply of potting mix before you start this process, and don't be afraid to leave the plant out of its pot for an extended time. When you get the plant out of the pot, check the roots, and the condition of the potting mix inside the pot. Take photos if possible, and let us know what you find. Don't worry about leaving the plant out of the pot, if the roots are in good shape, you can cover them with a wet paper towel, and re-wet the towel periodically as it dries out. If the roots are mushy and dead, (root rot) you can cut the dead parts of the roots off, and leave the plant out to dry. No wet towel necessary.

I'll check back here often looking for responses, and we will continue. Have fun, and remember, orchids really are "tough old Birds"

Bill

Thank you, Bill. i appreciate your kindness.

I ordered Sun Bulb 5002 Better-Gro Special Orchid Mix, 8 Quarts to start this project under your direction. i took note of your entire post.

Dazed, The Sun Bulb orchid mixes look good to me. In my time with commercial orchid culture, fir bark mixes were always preferred for orchids. About the time I left the business, good quality mature fir bark became almost impossible to obtain, and everyone was scrambling to find a suitable substitute. I have used a lot of things in recent years, but none quite as good as fir. Fir bark, Perlite (sponge rock), and hardwood charcoal would be my mix of choice. The larger the plant, the larger the chunks in the mix. Good air flow around the roots of epiphyte orchids is critical for good health. In the jungle, when the rain stops drying begins.

Now, to your plant. Have you had a chance to unpot it yet? I’m very interested to hear what you find. Remember, when you start trimming on your plant(s), a sterile sharp blade used for each plant you work on. Sterilize with flame, or alcohol, or some other strong disinfectant. If roots have papery or mushy places in them, cut back to clean firm tissue. Bloom spikes and leaves, cut with a clean (not ragged edges) cut and cut back into clean healthy tissue. Allow the cut ends enough time to dry before repotting. Using a fungicide on your cuts is your choice. I always found letting the cuts have ample time to dry before repotting was enough. When you repot a plant after you have trimmed it, keep it dry for a few days to a week before putting it back on a regular watering cycle. I always use wet mix to pot. It is easier to work with, and not as dusty. It also supplies a bit of moisture around the plant, but not enough to cause problems.

Will catch you on the next round.

Bill

Bill very kind of you to stay around and help))

Dazed, I have found a complete soak of the roots, I mean sinking them in warm water and letting them soak at least one a week does wonders for all orchids, especially if using rain or fresh water with no salts or chemicals. Ice cubes has killed a many orchids.

Because the ice cubes do not soak and hydrate the roots properly and leave salt residue which kills the roots..

With Bills help and proper watering habits, you should be a pro at growing many orchids, especially this one.

Bill, please continue, it's a pleasure to see what you have to share.

Bill, thank you so much! I typed out a reply and added some photos, but the message didnt go through. i found that there was a lot of water in the pot. I emptied out the pot and cleaned off all the wet soil from the roots. It looks like ALL the roots had rotted. I cut back the soggy, mushy ones. I will send one photo at a time.

1:

Step 2:

Step 3:

Step 4:

The medium:

Step 5:

Let the remaining dry out then wrapped it in a wet towel.

It looks like new leaf is ready to drop off. The orchid mix arrived in the post. I’m thinking that i dont need it anymore. RIP.

dazed, I'm going to try to go through this, one (I hope) logical step at a time. To get right to the point, this does not look good. I'm going to guess at this point that the pot your orchid was planted in was the glazed, decorative outer container the plant was sold in. That means that container has no drainage hole in it anywhere. Commercial companies grow phalaenopsis orchids in the tropics by the tens of thousands. The young plants are placed in clear plastic slotted pots with usually some kind of moss or lichen to give them support and hold moisture. The plants are fertilized and watered automatically. When they bloom, the thin plastic pots are placed in a decorative ceramic outer sleeve and shipped by air all over the world. A huge number of people who purchase these plants know nothing about where they live in the wild, or how they grow in nature. When the blooms fade they toss the plants and purchase another one. Fact is, the outer decorative containers are there to offer protection to the plants in shipment, and most people should remove them and throw them in the trash when they purchase the plant. The real fact is these containers are nothing more than a gimmick by "Madison Ave." to kill orchids quickly, so people will purchase more plants. An orchid plant that sits in a pot of water for a week or more is a dead plant.

Now, having said that, you were somewhat fortunate, you were sold, or were given a plant that was marketed by supporters of the other gimmick. The old 1, 2, 3, or 4,.....ice cubes in the pot each week. Because orchids are such "tough old birds" , this takes quite a bit longer, but ultimately offers the same result, a dead plant, unless the grower knows exactly how to handle this kind of care. (I have a plant that was given to me more than two years ago, in bloom, and it remained in bloom up until about 3 months ago, when I felt compelled to repot it. I removed the old bloom spikes, some with blooms, and on close inspection discovered a new bloom spike about 4 or 5 inches long. I replaced the inner clear plastic liner back inside the glazed ceramic outer, non draining pot, and replaced the plant in the space it has occupied for as long as I have owned it. not repotted. Today this really pretty, healthy plant has two open blooms on a rapidly growing bloom spike.)

What do I do? When my plant gets pretty dry...That means you pull that inner plastic pot out and feel it...look at it, and determine if its really wet, or just somewhat moist inside. If you take that inner pot out and heft it in your hands and it feels room temperature and light, then its probably ready for water. Then tomorrow, take it to the kitchen sink and give it a thorough shower. wet as much of the plant as possible, and soak every thing inside that clear pot, and any roots that have grown outside that pot. I then place the plant on the drain of the sink for bout 30 min. to an hour, and replace the liner back inside the outer pot. That night before you go to bed check the plant and if there is water that has dripped into the outer pot, pour it out. This assures you that there is no standing water in that outer pot, and the air trapped inside the outer pot has a much higher humidity than the outside room air does. Its this moist warm air that the orchids thrive on.

Your plant was getting the Ice cube treatment (who ever heard of ice falling on the roots of plants growing near the equator?) which really damages the roots of plants. See myermike post of earlier today. Your plant was probably seriously compromised by this ice cube culture when your totally inexperienced (in orchid culture) brother-in-law came in and proceeded to over-water those poor dry roots planted in that dry bark looking stuff. That's why whats left of your potting mix looks like mud, and your plant has lost all its roots to root rot.

Now, P L E A S E, do not blame yourself, and certainly don't blame your brother-in-law. You were doing what the "experts" who sold you the plant told you to do,(Ice cubes) and your brother-in-law was doing what every indoor plant grower knows to do....don't let the plants dry out. And you have both succeeded remarkably well at what you knew to do.....You have succeeded in selling another plant for the "experts". I for one will bet you will soon have another try at this orchid growing craziness, and your brother-in-law is going to learn a bit about these crazy plants, and may even follow you into a new interest.

dazed, I'm going to rest my soap box for a while now, Let me know how close I am to the real story. I am interested, in helping you get into orchid growing, if that's what you want, but a lot of what I have said tonight is speculation based on your photos and what you have told me. also, give some thought to what you want to do next. I see a few possibilities. First, you can just give it up and say orchid growing is not for me, or two, there is a slim chance we can salvage this plant if you want to try. It'll take time, a good deal of time, and certainly may fail, but it could be a real learning experience that will cost almost nothing but the time. Third, you can march down to the nearest big box store or plant shop, and purchase a brand new orchid and try again. Your choice, let me know.

Bill

I could not fix a typo I just noticed on my post above with me cell.
Sorry.
Was suppose to say soak the roots in warm water ‘once’ a week at least or when they are dry.
Mike

And that plant can still survive with even one root left. You have that. The leaves look good considering. If you follow Bill’s advice it will push out new roots quickly to survive. That’s what they do in the wild.

Bill,

Loved this: 'You have succeeded in selling another plant for the "experts".'

Dazed, I'd pick # 3, get a new one. It may be almost free to try, but it may also be very frustrating.

Any way you go, good luck!

Bob

Ah Bill,

Thank you for having so much patience with me. you are correct on all counts in regards to what this orchid has gone through.. when i pulled out the plant I saw that there was a pool of water at the bottom of the ceramic pot that it was lying in. That is not what discouraged me, but when I had cut away all the damaged, mushy roots there was practically nothing left. I had slept by the time you had replied and only saw your message a few mins ago. Honestly I do not think I can revive that orchid. It’s now all dried up and parched. I’ll put a photo below of its current state. Thanks to you and Myer Mike for teaching me the proper way of caring for and handling an orchid. I may not purchase another right away, but i do plan to, now that I’m armed with knowledge on proper techniques. Its a miracle that the leaves looks so healthy. Gave me the false impression that all was well with it.

Dazed, and all, Thank you all for allowing this old man to do what he really enjoys doing. If there is anything I enjoy doing more than running my mouth and telling stories, its helping someone with an orchid problem by running my mouth and telling stories.

Dazed, I completely understand your decision not to get back into this crazy orchid culture thing right here in the middle of winter and the holiday season to boot. If you do decide to jump back into orchids, send me a private message so I will know you are back on board. I'd love to keep in touch and see how things go on your second round. For the rest of you folks who jumped in and backed me up so well, Thank You! I know its difficult for someone who is struggling with a plant problem to ask for help, but to ask for, and accept advice from a total stranger is particularly difficult for both sides of the discussions. A trust has to be built between both parties of the discussions, and to have others, whose names are familiar around forums like this to jump in and affirm the validity of the information being offered really helps. Thanks to all of you who were willing to help out this time.

To all, I wish you a very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year.

Bill

Thanks again, Bill and to everyone who chipped in their thoughts and advice! Much appreciated. it was all very intriguing to hear/read, and fun!

Bill, i will definitely give it another go when it gets a little warmer. this orchid was a gift from my sister so there was some sentimental value. A friend of mine suggested a rooting hormone.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from my end as well!

Bill, Happy New Year! i wanted to share with you a beautiful phal orchid that i purchased at BJ’s that I wanted you to have a look at. My decision to purchase this one was largely because plants make me happy, especially in this gloomy weather and this particular one looked healthy (in my eyes at least). Please share your thoughts on it!

Gata, I believe you were dazed77 in the older posts, is that correct? This place sure makes it difficult to figure out who was talking to who when there are several posts involved. Anyway, like a good horse back rider, when the thing throws you off, get right back up and climb back in the saddle. Looks to me like you made a good choice of plants. Two spikes will have you in blooms for quite some time. I'm not sure exactly what the mutation was that produced that flower color pattern, (and mutation in plants is NOT a bad thing, just different) but you do see quite a few of this one lately. on some flowers the chocolatey/purpley spots cover most all of the flowers, others there is just a sprinkling of the spots. I think the accepted popular name for this is "Harlequin patterned flowers". I can't see the pot well in your photo, but I suspect there are two of them. There probably will be a thin clear plastic pot that the plant is actually growing in, and that will be inside the outer liner that is a glazed ceramic pot with no drainage holes. Watering a large plant in full bloom as this one is, can be difficult. You need to remove the inner pot, and spray the plant thoroughly with a low volume hose of some type. The idea is to thoroughly soak the plant and roots, but not damage the plant or bloom spikes. Let the plant dry off for maybe an hour, then put the two pots back together, and replace the plant back where it normally grows-in the same orientation to the sun as it was before watering. The next day, check the plant and be sure there is no water collected in the outer glazed pot. You do not want any standing water in that outer pot. In the winter perhaps a heated enclosed garage would be a good place to water, in summer under a large shade tree.

I would start snooping around plant and garden shops, looking for a large slotted clay orchid pot, and some Fir bark based orchid potting mix, because when these blooms are gone you are going to be needing a good repotting job. That may be the topic for another forum session at a later time.

Have fun. Bill

Hi Bill, thank you so much as usual for your detailed orchid advice. Yes my name is Gita and my username is dazed77. I could not figure out how to send a private message, unfortunately.

Do you mean i should soak in warm water and leave it out to dry for one hour? It’s cold outside in northeast NJ..The orchid medium is fir bark.. I live in an apartment and really want this one to be successful. i may purchase a plant stand.

Gita

I'll write more tomorrow, but no, you don't want that plant outside in the NJ winter! Not knowing where you were, I was just suggesting places you might easily water a big plant like that in full bloom, without damaging the blooms/bloom spike. The goal of what I was saying was to keep any standing water from collecting in the outside glazed, undrained pot, or cover. If the bottom of the inside planter sits in water, the roots will stay wet, and even short periods of standing in water can create root rot. orchids like moving air around their roots, therefore we use well ventilated pots, and course bark planting mixes. You also do not have to use warm water, just not chilly, or cold water. Maybe a few degrees above room temperature. I have an appt. with the eyeball doctor tomorrow, and have to water my little greenhouse, but will check in at some time.

Bill