Orchids: Got leaves, but not much roots: Phalaenopsis, 2 by dyzzypyxxy

dyzzypyxxy wrote:
Post some pictures of your sickly orchids and we can give you more advice as to how you should proceed, Albeachrealtor.

As Bree says, most orchids you see at the box stores have been shoved into a decorative container that's not at all appropriate for an orchid. Their roots need air, so a real orchid pot has holes not only on the bottom, but up the sides as well. Baskets made of wood or wicker or other natural materials, and even plastic (with lots of holes) work fine too. Or mount them as Bree's picture shows above if you want to hang them.

First thing to do is to haul your sick 'chids out of their pots and check out the roots. You'll often find a big soggy wad of moss in there with some of them, too. Getting some air to the roots and letting them dry out a bit is the first step to recovery.

I got two at IKEA on Labor Day. One has done amazingly well, but the other started looking sad and shriveling up its leaves after about a month. It had a ball of solid wet moss under the roots as big as my fist. Yuck. Re-potting in a proper orchid mix (bark, perlite, charcoal all in big chunks) after trimming off a lot of squishy dead roots and dusting with cinnamon did the trick but it was nearly 6 weeks before the leaves had plumped back up and it popped out a new root. Rehab takes patience, too.