I sort of freaked out. It could be the normal aging when old leaves die, but what if it is not. Orchid forum members pointed out that bark pieces used for potting are too large and maybe they don't retain enough moisture. Also maybe roots are dead and rotted?
To check the roots I pulled my oncidium from the pot:
Well, they are not the best but also not all dead and have plenty of new growing points.
I was also worried about Psychopsis that is potted into same large bark, so I pulled it out too:
Psychopsis roots seem to be fine also.
So I just picked the large pieces of bark out from medium and added a handful of coconut husk chips to the mix instead:
Then I potted both plants into their clay pots with new mix. Hope it will help to retain more moisture. I am not sure if I should remove yellow leaves or just let them be and they wll dry out and fall off at some point.
I think those who scared you on this one are dead wrong. Those leaves that have turned yellow are always the first to do so and fall off and are usually gone long before the pseudobulb becomes leafless and a backbulb. That plant looks as healthy as can be and so does the Psychopsis. They say that the pieces of bark are too large, but that is a relative thing, depending on the quality of the bark, how tightly things are packed, your watering schedules, etc. It looks to me like you are doing everything right.
ReplyDeleteThank you. I was watering twice a week, but now with chc added I think to water once a week and see how it goes. Humidity is dropping with heating dramatically, so I hope chc will help with that a bit too.
ReplyDeleteRon is right. All looks well with the plants. It is easy to get nervous over things turning brown.
ReplyDeleteRemember that plants (in general) will be fine with a little under watering, but not with over watering.
Thank you! I agree about overwaterng. My orchids started to survive when I disciplined myself to wait an extra day when not totally sure if plant has to be watered.
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