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| One bloom stood up, the others were too far gone. |
A perfectly good phalaenopsis orchid, but her blooms and leaves were droopy. She'd been outside in freezing weather, so it was entirely possible she wasn't going to make it. The pot she was in was pretty cool, so I figured even if she died, it would have been through no fault of my own, and one of my other two could take over the basket.
Got her home and took a good look. She was still in her plastic sleeve from whatever store she'd been purchased at, and so much of her potting mix had spilled. Leaves were dehydrated but firm, and her blooms were wilted but big. Not at all like a dead orchid.
Had to repot her to get enough bark and moss around her roots. While I did that, I cute away almost half of her root mass because it was that dehydrated and dead. It seemed she hadn't been watered since she left her nursery, and that was a little upsetting. I've lost many plants in my life due to bad watering, but I've never completely forgotten to water one.
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| Leaves are firm, and the pot is nifty |
Trimmed the dead roots, repacked moist moss around her middle and bark around the rest, and got her back in her pot. Soaked her for a few hours, and some of her surviving roots immediately turned a lovely shade of green as they took in precious water. Then got her near a north-facing windows.
The next day, her leaves were immediately plump, albeit still wrinkled, and one of her blooms had stood back up. She's recovering very well, and I think she'll make it. She was in worse condition than the orchid I bought on clearance, and he's doing great.
As a matter of fact, for the first time I've ever had orchids, I've been watching him prepare to bloom. Such a mighty beast, he is, and I cannot wait to watch the little monster queens open their wings and look at the world.
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| He's gonna big a big boy! |
