Phal - gnats & medium question

[salvador1970]

Hi Everyone. I attached 2 pictures of my first Phal(the one that made my addicted!). Fortunately, it has started a spike, but I am worried that so many gnats are hovering in the bark medium. I do not want to re-pot it till it finishes blooming.
As you can see, it also has the bottom leaf yellowing, which normal I presume, and what you cannot see are two new roots growing.

Do you guys think I can add on top of the bark a layer of coconut mixture to cover the new roots? Will it help with the gnat problem? What solutions are there to get rid of these fungus gnats?


Thanks

Fadi

[Brutal_Dreamer]

Fadi,

Your spike is very early in development. You could repot this orchid without much worry. When we were selling phals commercially, we would buy phals from Hawaii that were just about in the state of the one in your photo. When they arrived here, we would repot them, spray them, tag them and then sell them when they bloomed. We never had a problem and the only thing we did was be careful not to disrupt the roots too much.

If you still do not want to chance it, you could spray and run some insecticide through the medium. That should end the gnat problem. Also, keep a fan blowing on the plant to move the air around. They (the gnats) will hate that.

Cheers,
BD

[ang709]

I had a phal with the same problem. I let it soak in water that had a little dish soap mixed in. I repeated the process the following week. It hasn't had any gnats since.

[Joan]

How much is a little dish soap in how much water please.

[salvador1970]

Thanks Bruce I might just repot it. Already did that to another phal in bloom and I didnt get any flower blasts. On the contrary, the flower buds started opening so it looks nicer now!

What about this dish soap? Does it really work or does it hurt the Orchids?

[cindiras]

I use Dawn dish soap to wash leaves on my plants (necessary! They are growing in my bird room in the basement.The birds generate a LOT of dust!) 3 to 4 drops to a quart or two of warm water (my hands appreciate the warmth) and a soft cloth to gently wipe the leaves. I haven't tried pouring it through the media.

[ang709]

I was very unscientific in my methods. I put a small squirt in an empty gallon container then filled it with water and poured it through the pot. After that I put a squirt in the bathroom sink, filled it with water, and let the plant soak for a little while. The following week I again poured water with soap through the pot. The phal has not had any gnats since that. The phal did not seem to suffer any ill effects from the soap. The gnat incident was early this winter; the phal just finished blooming.

It was a rescue phal that had been given to me, so I wasn't afraid of taking a chance with the soap. Also, I had previously tried the watering with soapy water on a spider plant that had those gnats. The spider plant is fine too. I can't guarantee results, but it worked for me.

[salvador1970]

Ang709

I think I might give the dish soap a try then

Thanks guys

Fadi

[ang709]

Let us know how it turns out