Back in May 2019 I published a post featuring my newly acquired Orchid. Me and that orchid have been through a lot since then – it almost died, but I managed to nurse it back to life and it even flowered again – I was thrilled. Unfortunately when my puppy Barney arrived I had to keep the orchid out of his way, and I stupidly put it in the conservatory where it got far too hot and it now looks like this….
Sigh. I know, it looks ready for the bin. BUT, it does still have green roots and I’m not ready to give up on it yet. Maybe I should try repotting it? Any advice welcome.
Meanwhile, some damn fool who knew how upset I was about it, gave me this….
Ready for your close up?
The new orchid can see the shrivelled one from across the windowsill. I’ve promised I’ll look after it and I won’t let it suffer the same fate though I’m sure it shakes every time I come near it.
Wonky Words 
The same thing happened to my Phalaenopsis orchid. Well, minus the move because of a Barney.
Anyway, mine looked like yours does now, so I made sure it didn’t totally dry out (I recall drenching it in room temperature rain water and immediately tipping the excess away every few days) and it very slowly put forth new leaves. And eventually a flower head.
I’m sure you can bring yours back from the dead, Ms Scarlet!
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Mr Devine – Did you drench it from the top or bottom? I gave it some water after I published this post – but only a dribble at the bottom. I think I killed my mum’s orchid with excess water, so I know I’ll have to be careful if I use the drench method.
Thank you for your help!
Sx
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From the top. I wanted to make sure that all the roots got wet but that it wasn’t standing in water. I think it’s okay to let them dry out a little between waterings. Once leaves started to grow, I was careful not to get water in the folds so that it didn’t rot.
I think in the wild, these orchids grow on trees (did Dinah post a photo of one on a tree in her garden once?), so they’re never waterlogged, but they do like moist, humid environments.
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Mr Devine – I have read that orchids grow on trees, and that they like a bit of humidity – but the light has to be just right as well – once you’ve found the right spot for them I think you can generally let them get on with it. The right spot is not a very hot conservatory!
Sx
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Blimey! I can’t recall having a Phal. actually ON a tree. I did have a couple whose pots were tied to a tree so the wind couldn’t whack them against branches.
With yours, I’d dunk it gently in a bucket of warm-ish water for a few SECONDS; just enough for water to trickle when you lift the pot. Then stand the pot on3 or 4 ice lolly/popsicle sticks, so it can breathe/drain completely, then repeat after a day or 2. If Devon spring isn’t too hot or windy you could give it some sunshine, but you’d need to be close-by to rescue it!
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Thank you, Dinah, this sounds like a reason to buy some lollies!! I know you can buy the sticks on their own, but why would I do that?! I agrees that the bottom root probably needs some air, so propping the pot up is a good idea.
Cold in Devon this weekend, but sunshine due from Wednesday.
Sx
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My birthday orchid from December 2025 is still glorious! I think I’ve finally found the right place for it and it seems to be thriving from benign neglect. xoxo
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Savvy – That’s the trick with Orchids – finding a spot that they love, then they’ll just get on with being glorious without much assistance!
Lovely to see you!
Sx
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I used to be against staking orchids especially the rainforest types, until I came home one day and found my phalaenopsis had toppled over and scattered bark all over the place. If I had a dangling teapot, I’d fill it with sphagnum moss and stuff it in that, minus the stakes of course or failing that, pop it in a jiffy bag and send it to the current Prime Minister or Charles Mountbatten Windsor.
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Mitzi – A use for the hanging teapot! Same re the staking – but then it looked ungainly as it leant towards the window – I twisted the pot round but it never righted itself.
My poor orchid! It deserves better than those two recipients, but then again it deserves better than a nincompoop that leaves it in the conservatory on a very hot day.
Sx
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Ah. overheating houseplants… I managed to kill a load of Streptocarpus by putting them out for an “airing” on a damp and drizzly summer day, buggering off for the day to Kew Gardens with a chum – only for the weather to defy all forecasts and give us a blazing, sunny day! Needless to say, I cam home to find the Streps no so much “aired” as “fried”.
Jx
PS Orchids are surprisingly resilient, despite their reputation.
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Jon – I’m glad I’m not the only one to make mistakes with house plants!
I have given my Orchid a drench and drain, and I’ll report back at a later date.
Sx
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I went to an Orchid show last year. I didn’t realize the number of varieties that exist. Some have amazing shapes.
Always fun to wonder what plants are thinking even if they don’t really think do they?
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Bill – I always wish that ancient Oak trees could talk, let alone Orchids. They might think, in their own way. I bet they don’t think a lot of mankind! But maybe they like music?
Sx
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Yes music makes sense. It’s vibrations so I guess plants could feel a vibe.
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As others have said, don’t give up on it yet! Orchids grow on trees in the wild in Florida! It is one of the things I marvel at every time I go there and I’m sure I must have shared pictures from my MILs yard of them before she moved into an apartment. They need warm air temp not hot, with dappled light (bright shade). I had a coworker who was very proud of his orchid collection and indeed it was fine! He would bring in several from his collection once a year for a few days for everyone to appreciate. I have an old fish tank in the garage, I’m wondering if we might be able to create a small warm microclimate in an open topped fish tank or deep-dish tray, large pebbles, dry decorative moss, orchids in their pots, maybe surrounded with hardier plants and timed plant light? I think it’s time for some YouTube research! I watch a lot of British YouTube gardeners because our climates are similar.
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Melanie – I won’t give up on my old Orchid – it’s special to me because I nursed it back to life after my little terrier died and it gave me a little bit of focus. I was so cross with myself when I fried it. It is definitely still alive, so cross fingers I can nurse it back again.
I like the idea of the microclimate in a fish tank! That sounds like it could be very pretty and a worthy winner of a future gardening competition on Mr Devine’s blog!
Sx
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I’ve tried once, I thought I could just “wing it” without research and careful consideration and nature immediately hit me with “You fool! Let me show how little you know about ecosystems! I had to pull all of the plants (Cacti and Succulents because I thought they would be easy) out the tank and most of them survived…until the winter I forget to water anything. Silly me forgetting that keeping a constantly heated house would eventually dry more than just my skin!
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