This plant was left behind after they were rearranging our office space. The soil (wood chips) is bone dry, one of the “vines” is dead and dried. The other is not as dry by will be if not helped. The leaves are not “crispy” but very withered and soft.
Is this one beyond saving?
If not what type of plant is it so I can look up care instructions.
Let me know if you need any more details.
by Bwrobes
6 Comments
It’s an orchid. I don’t think all is definitely lost you may be able to revive it. From my limited knowledge they hate sitting in water hence the chunky soil. Would give it a run through with water and put it somewhere light.
Salvageable. Head over to r/orchidscare and they can help you out.
It’s a Phalaenopsis Orchid
Soak the whole thing in water for 20/30 mins and then let it drip dry in the sink, after that, put it back in its pot and place in indirect sunlight. Should bounce back, still looks green!
I responded to another comment with this, but you can switch this into water and it should survive. Clip off the dried flower stalks and any completely bone-dry/crispy (OR mushy/smelly) roots; you’ll most likely have to wait quite a while for another flower but that’s okay. Rinse the roots gently in room-temp water, and make sure to gently scrape off any trapped soil or rot. After that, you can use a mason jar or really any container that has an opening smaller than the diameter of the leaf spread, fill it with water, and make sure the water level is up to where the roots attach to the base of the plant (but not too much higher)! You want to replace the water like once a week if it’s in a dark jar, but more frequently if it’s clear and in a sunny place (because it’ll grow biofilm faster that way). Then just keep the water level up. Eventually when it’s fully healthy you can start adding small amounts of orchid food to the water if you want. Editing to add: cut off all flower stalks on the plant while you’re healing it. Right now it’s putting its energy into reproduction and it should be focusing on surviving instead
Whoa, Thanks for all the prompt advice! I will do my best to nurse this baby back to health.
Googled photos of phalaenopsis orchids and they look pretty nice.
The “vines” are flower scapes. They’re a single use organ and they’re supposed to die when they finish flowering. The plant itself looks perfectly fine, just thirsty. If you follow basic instructions for orchid care it’ll make new flowers eventually