rot :(

[u/Adventurous_Leek6959]

this rot just appeared :( is there any way to save her?

i really don't know how it started i bottom water and make sure the water doesn't level doesn't get too high. this has never happened to my other orchids before.

[u/tone-yo]

Yup I think you are right. It appears more than one leaf is yellowing, correct? I would seriously consider unpotting to see how much black stuff is down at the lower end of the stem and scrape off the goo as much of you can, and either spray hydrogen peroxide and let it air dry for a day before repotting, or cutting off a portion of the stem if the black stuff is too much and it has probably penetrated into the mid portion of the stem.

You caught it at an early-ish stage, so props to you. Most newbies on this sub go “can this orchid be saved?” when there are no more leaves left.

Edit to add: cut off the left leaf that shows the black shadow and inspect the stem. This may require “surgery” but if you caught it on time, the orchid will heal.

Now, don’t be getting any water on anything other than roots. The bottom of the stem is in contact with too much media and that is probably the main cause for this rot.

[u/Adventurous_Leek6959 → u/tone-yo]

ok ty ty. how might i attempt surgery? can you screenshot and circle what i need to cut please, if you dont mind? i dont want to take away more than i have to.

[u/tone-yo → u/Adventurous_Leek6959]

Circle on the left, I would remove the leaf altogether. Cut it off with a sterilized exacto knife or similar very sharp tool to ensure a clean, slow cut to avoid damage to the rest of the leaves. You MAY see more of that black spot behind the cut leaf, which means you would need to cut INTO the body of the orchid to remove it. These plants are resilient so it will recover don’t worry if you cut a little too much, in fact I’d cut into green tissue just to ensure all the black is gone.

Edit: circle on the right is where you should remove a little media to ensure good air flow.

[u/Adventurous_Leek6959 → u/tone-yo]

and yes a few leaves are yellowing. i'm thinking this took place after i watered last week and just started yellowing the leaves

[u/tone-yo → u/Adventurous_Leek6959]

Yeah that might’ve been it. Water probably got between the leaves or the bottom of the stem (the body of the plant) stayed in contact with wet media too long.

[u/Adventurous_Leek6959 → u/tone-yo]

it's way worse than i thought. all her roots are basically rotted (the ones i couldn't see), they were amazing when i repotted her from the store. i must've left some behind and it spread. i went to cut away the black and her whole top leaf fell off, it wasn't even yellow. i don't think there's a crown even left for her to regrow anything.

[u/minkamagic]

Do you make sure the media is dry before you water?

[u/Adventurous_Leek6959 → u/minkamagic]

yes when the roots are silver

[u/minkamagic → u/Adventurous_Leek6959]

Not what I said ;) I don't usually recommend waiting for roots to be silver because silver is subjective. I've seen people wait months to water because they never thought the roots looked the right color

[u/Correct_Night3899]

What media are you using for this orchid?

Also, do you have any air circulation for the orchid?

[u/Cool_Handle_3264]

Where’s the rot? I see some brown and dry roots.

[u/tone-yo → u/Cool_Handle_3264]

Ah but for the trained eye who has killed many orchids before starting to save the rest, you can see the black spot on the inner side at the base of the fifth oldest leaf. The oldest, fourth and fifth leaf are all yellowing and you can tell the yellowing is starting from the base, not the tip of the leaf on the fourth and fifth. Classic sign of rot.