2 repot or not, and the leaves and what rot? ;)

[PetSlayer]

Hello everyone!
Because I am new to phrags and vandas and catts, I have a bunch of pictures and questions. I don't know in which order they will come in the post, so there'll be a guessing game to
First, conditions for each:
Phrags - made a sort of wilderness for them, with the ultrasonic fogger and a tiny waterfall. All sit in zink containers in water (about 2 cm in it). They get a light shower every morning and afternoon. My place is dry enough so that every droplet vanishes in about 30 minutes.
Vandas: towards the south window, 1,5 m from it, extra light source in form of a halogen strong reading lamp. Root bath every other day, root shower at least once daily (they are literally hanging by my ear, I feel them and spray often during the evenings)
Cattleyas: south windowsill, extra light in form of a fluorescent strong lightbulb, daily leaf shower, been parchimonious with the water so far, keep checking for the pot weight.
Temperature seems to stay between 18*C at night and 21-22 by day.

Questions:
1. What do you think that I should do for this cattleya Mahalo Jack, it has been repotted a week ago, is there anything else that I could do for it? The other just finished flowering, should I repot her as well?
2. These are some of my phrags. As you can see, I have a new growth that is hanging in the air, is it good to have a sphag bandage under/around it to stimulate root develoment?Repot?
3. What is with the brown leaf tips, should I worry? What about those funny markings on the leaves?
4. Should I cut the empty spike or leave it coz its perky?
5. This is a spike on my vanda that grew well until yesterday when it showed signs of yellowing as you can see and today it looks rather wrinkly (

All help is appreciated, I looked everywhere on the site and couldn't find my specific problems!

Thank you,
Laura

[PetSlayer]

And a flower for good measure
Laura

[tucker85]

I only have a couple of thoughts. The yellow vanda spikes; unfortunately that just happens sometimes. It may not be anything you did. The phrag with brown tips looks like it might need to be repotted in fresh media. Brown tips can be root problems or a buildup of fertilizer salts in the media. It looks to me like you have a tendency to over-pot just a little bit. I find I have more success when I use small pots with only a little room for new growth. Especially for the cattleyas. Good luck.

[PetSlayer]

Thank you so much!
All the phrags are in their original pots from the shop, didn't dare doing a thing because of the spikes. Trouble is that as I write I must say that just 10 minutes ago I just noticed several new buds where there were none. I was really in the mood to repot the big one that is leaning because it is very difficult to accomodate. It had 3 tiny buds and instead of bud blast i have now 3 big buggers that will open soon (probably tuesday, wednesday and saturday considering their size) and in the back of each of those I just saw other small ones emerging.
It has been a bittersweet day for me, 2 of the ones that looked dreadfull opened flowers (the fimbriata and the yellow bird), the leaning phrag gives me buds, my lil dragon has at least one more tinsy lil bud behind the one that you can see in the photo, and I confirmed that my dick clements has a new bud, I can see a definite blob peaking deep inside. And my asco got spike blast
Thanks again, I'll get to it tomorrow and hope for the best, you know better, I know phals best.
And a flower for you

Laura

[PetSlayer]

Oh, and I have several small bumps that are too round to be leaf spikes on my rescue underpotted cymbidiums (took what survived from 2 cymbidiums I have no clue of and repotted them together in a small pot after a whole summer out in the cold)

[shirleycox]

The best time for repotting phrags is when new buds start to grow and after blossoming. If you notice that the medium starts to break down, then this too is a good time for repotting.

Use a new mix of the same kind of potting compost you used beforehand. These kinds of orchids grow all year-round and are very tolerant when it comes to repotting. Also, be sure that it has adequate drainage.

Phragmipedium orchids typically need to be repotted every one to two years. When doing so, check if the roots have some rotting in them. Cut off any dead ones and then repot.

[PetSlayer]

Thank you Shirley!
Sounds like I made the right choice, they truly are an orchid for me! I loooooooooooove repotting! Trimming roots, wiggling out old compost from inbetween, cutting...the smell of earth and green and the feeling of accomplishment you get when you're done. That is one of the expressions of the feeling of unadulterated satisfaction Nothing like repotting after a "carpy" day
Have a great week!
Laura

[PetSlayer]

And a flower for you

[panam]

I loooooooooooove repotting! Trimming roots, wiggling out old compost from inbetween, cutting...the smell of earth and green and the feeling of accomplishment you get when you're done. That is one of the expressions of the feeling of unadulterated satisfaction Nothing like repotting after a "carpy" day
Have a great week!
Laura

Goodness, Laura - if you ever make it to the States, I know LOTS of people who would love to make you happy by "letting" you repot lots of orchids! You've got some really pretty ones there - thanks for sharing!

[PetSlayer]

Shame, I have a friend that I'm almost literally chasing with a pair of shears because I would just love to trim her phals and all I can say is that it is not appreciated. She thinks I should get meself some fishesp I think her windowspace is lovely and a great loss for a respectable orchid collection
...so here's who made me scream with delight in the morning, it looked really beaten up when I got it...a miraculous lil flower for you
Laura