Leaf abort or crown rot? Dtps. I-Hsin 'Ice Coke'

[Kassie]

I was so excited to watch my Dtps. I-Hsin 'Ice Coke' spike start developing branches that I failed to notice the newest tiny leaf had died. I gave it a tug and it came out easily and had a bit of white mold at the bottom. The whole thing is less than an inch long. It had barely emerged before the spike started.

Do they sometimes abandon new leaves when they spike or have I caused my first case of crown rot? Is a basal keiki the only way to "recover" from crown rot?

*sigh* well, if I've killed it, hopefully there will at least be some great bloom photos before it gasps its last.

[espranch]

Yes a basal keiki/or one on the spike is the only way for it to recover. In looking back, water MUST have somehow gotten into the crown. If the plant were mine, I'd spray with alcohol ( where the rot is located ) then, powder the rotten spot with sulphur. This will stop the rot and kill any bacteria. It will probably still flower, and perhaps make a keiki on the spike. After many phals with crown rot, I water my phals from the bottom only...let them soak for a minute or two, then drain. In the wild, phals grow sideways and the natural indention which runs down the middle of the leaf, drains all the water out of the crown...Good luck with it...Betty :-(

[Kassie]

*sigh* Of course it would have to be one of the few orchids in my collection that I actually consciously chose and searched for, as opposed to snatching up all starry-eyed whenever I passed something in the store or found a special online. It's one of the more expensive ones, too. I'm experiencing a lot of Murphy's law-type situations in my orchid journey.

The only thing I can think happened was over-enthusiastic misting coupled with less airflow when I moved it to a spot I thought had better lighting for the spike. Some of my other phals have started leaning over more naturally, but this one is quite upright.

I want to save it. I'm toying with buying some keiki grow. Has anyone had good results with this? Some of the reading I've done seems to indicated that hormone-stimulated basal keikis can be kind of deformed and never grow their own roots?