Root-rotted dendrobium & new aerial roots

[sumognat]

Hi,

I am an orchid newbie and I picked up two potted dendrobium orchids ___ last year since I had a coupon that I had no other use for. I knew they were not potted in the best medium, but never got around to repotting them since I was busy working on other yard projects. 3-4 weeks ago, I noticed they were not looking good and basically could tell the roots were rotting from too much water (I had them located on the north side of my house that is mostly shaded--the rest of my yard is full-sun exposure).

Realizing if I didn't do something soon that I would lose them, I freed them from their pots and wet medium, made more drainage holes in the plastic pots they were in, and repotted them with a pre-made dendrobium potting mix that will work well. I was able to save one orchid before much damage was done and it had already been putting out new growth before the repotting, but my favorite one of the two (of course!) that has purple-ish fragrant flowers was a hearbeat away from the yard waste bin. After bringing the 2 orchids inside for 2 weeks without watering, they both stabilized and my favorite one of the two is growing tiny little leaf buds on some of the canes. It's also putting out roots at the base of these new buds.

The trouble is, I don't know what to do with roots that are growing 6 inches or more above the base of the plant? Do I cut the canes just below these roots and repot? The canes do not look good near the base of the plant, since that was the area that rotted the most, but some of the canes look healthy towards the top. I'm not seeing much (if any) root growth at the base of the plant. What do I need to do in order to continue moving things along? If the above description is not helpful, I can try to post some pics of what's going on.

Thanks in advance!

[rich63]

It sounds like your dens.are kicking out some kekies(New Baby plants) If you could post some photos we would all be able to comment better.Good Luck,Rich

[Brutal_Dreamer]

Yes, I agree, a photo would help us see what is going on but it sounds like keikies.

Cheers,
BD

[sumognat]

Thanks! I do think they are keikies (I believe there are 5 or 6 of them on the canes). I will post some pictures this weekend.

Thanks, again!