Hi, my husband got me some beautiful orchids… he stored them in the outside fridge overnight to keep them hidden until this morning. Now half of them are mushy and wilted. We are not very good with plants what can I do to save them ? Do I need to trim the mushy ones or just leave them alone? Help
by Sobchak_shell01
8 Comments
https://preview.redd.it/icr4stfiad0h1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=389f0f016de8439779311d302ea047f0dc4b130c
The mushy side 😬
Well my hot guess would be, that the fridge killed them :/
The fridge….I know you mentioned why, but it’s still baffling. It looks like it was very beautiful and healthy before going in the fridge. The plant will live if you take care of it, but most of the flowers will fall very soon no matter what you do(I don’t think it matters that much if you decide to cut them flower stem or not). This looks like at least 2 orchids plants potted together, I hope the less droopy one will hold onto the flowers longer for you.
Orchids like these generally prefer warmer conditions. with airflow. Several hours spent in a closed fridge is far from ideal and may result in cell death. I second quintilliahan in that you should cut off the flowers to give the plants the best chance of survival. Flowers take a lot of energy to produce even in ideal conditions, so a sad plant with flowers will likely get sadder if trying to maintain those flowers while stressed.
well i can see why you guys aren’t very good with plants, no offense. why would he think to put a tropical plant in the refrigerator?? the flowers can’t be revived so you might as well cut them off, but the plant itself might live if you take care of it, and it might bloom again but it could be until next year.
The rest of the plant (besides the flowes) still looks ok & green so far. Best to google Phalaenopsis care and read some short articles/watch a youtube video. It doesn’t take that long but teaches you what to look out for (soil, watering, temperature, fertilizer, light). Especially for the light: Orchids need a lot more than low might plants, so best to probably keep it right behind a window. If it sits 2-3m away from a window it will probably be too dark and might not flower again. Our eyes tell you that our house light is bright, but they give out only 10FC vs 800-1500FC behind a sunny window, which is what most plants prefer. In good light and fertilized care some hybrids (most sold ones are hybrids) can flower multiple times a year even. The place in the picture looks ok.
honestly, my guess would be the whole plant is shot. the leaves in the pics that you included in the comments are super wrinkly.
cut off the flower spikes, give it a water (no NOT get water into the center of the leaves), let it rest for a week and see how it fares. if it’s turning all yellow, she’s a goner for sure. cold like that can cause cell death in plants, especially tropical ones.
for reference, i bring my entire orchid collection indoors when temperatures outside drop anywhere below 50
Unfortunately, the wilted blooms are done. Thankfully, it looks like most of the blooms survived. I would let them fall off on their own. Cutting them could possibly cause more damage.
Now..You have a beautiful Orchid and a wonderful interesting story to pass down through generations. It’s the little things that matter and make life interesting and unforgettable. 🙂