My pathetic orchid :(

[kentosaurs]

Hey....I've seen so many gorgeous pics of orchids you guys grown and it really makes me feel ashame for ignoring my orchid and let it cling for dear life..So from today onwards i shall try to make my orchid flower again....This fella always comes out with a new stem and flowers...As for the tallest stem..It grew from another stem's base like always and flwoered...But halfway before the flowers could open...Alll of it just start dropping the flower buds So any tips on this phal? Its the common 1 with white flowers....I know it looks bad but i shall rescue it



I added some LFS for the topping...Just to keep a little moisture...And a new shoot


The root ball....Its massive..


Tips

Ken

[paphioboy]

Hi ken.. Firstly that is not a phal. its a dendrobium hybrid. if the flowers are fairly round, then it is bred from the white from of the Cooktown orchid, dendrobium phalaenopsis or dendrobium bigibbum. The roots look ok, so it should grow nicely. avoid covering the old pseudobulbs with LFS. if kept too wet, they will rot. Lighting is as for droseras or neps. True phalaenopsis take less light, somewhat like amps. You could consider repotting in a larger pot too. choose a pot that is just 1 or 2 inches larger than the rootball. Use charcoal, sphag is too wet for most dends. Good luck..

[kentosaurs]

Hi Paphio...Thanks for IDing it...I didn't knwo what it is since orchid is soo widespread...Anyways its pratically in charcoal....I just add a little moss on the top so that i don't have to water that much...I hope thats still fine And what do you mean by this

avoid covering the old pseudobulbs with LFS

I'm still new to all this "scientific" terms hehe..I find this guy extremely hardy...I've tried never watering it for 2-3 weeks and nothing just leaving it there and it still grew..And also when it comes out with new shoots, the shoots grow very fast too

Oh yeah...The flowers are plain white with a very faint yellowish fuzzy hair in the middle..

Ken

[funkychips]

Hi Ken,
I notice that dendrobium orchids attract thrips when in flower. I don't know if you have this problem or not but if you do, watch out for them as they may do d**age to the petals. They appear as tiny black bugs with long abdomen. Old plants are also susceptible to mosaic viruses, which can cause disfigured flowers later on.

[kentosaurs]

Hi......Black bugs...Hmm i saw some on my raffs....The look like a C shape..

Ken

[paphioboy]

The pseudobulbs are the stems in your pic. Don't cover the bases as they get fungal infection very quickly if kept too wet. You can cover the roots, just not the stems. Dendrobiums can be watered more often than once every 2-3 weeks. Most people water every day if potted in charcoal.