Starbuck: Water Culture Day 30

I’ve had Starbuck for a month now and so far, she has only dropped one flower. I’m pretty sure it was her oldest flower so I’m not concerned. Over the past few weeks, she has been on a schedule of two wet days followed by two dry days. During this time, I have given her enough water to cover about half of her roots. After looking at her today, I’ve decided to lower her water level to about one third of her roots. I’ve also decided to change her schedule to three wet days followed by two dry days.

So far, Starbuck has had minimal root damage with only small spots needing to be removed. Unfortunately, many of the bad spots are at the top or in the middle of the root. For now, I’m only removing dying or dead velamen and leaving the rest. Chances are high that these partial losses will lead to full loss of some of her roots. I’ll see how she reacts to this new schedule for two cycles and then re-evaluate.

While examining Starbuck, I noticed her leaves were showing signs of mild dehydration. This is due to the root loss she has had and probably a little shock. If there is no improvement this week, I’ll add a root simulator to her next water cycle. Another matter I decided to look at was her vase size. The vase she was in was a little too large, allowing her leaves to slide down inside it. Orchids like to feel secure, so I’ve moved her to a smaller, tighter fitting pint glass. In the pint glass, she fits a little more snugly and her leaves will have room to open up.

All in all, I’m satisfied with Starbuck’s progress and I’m hoping she will start putting out some new roots soon.