Collectors of Neofinetia falcata know all about the joy of spring that brings the beauty of colored root tips on their plants. Other orchids, too, exhibit this clear sign of happy and active growth, but where do these orchid root tips go come fall? And why do they sometimes disappear even in summer? Here’s a question from a recent customer and my answer.
Question:
Hi Kristen, The Neof. falcata Manjushage is doing quite well and produced a nice bloom. Some of the root tips were pink/red when it arrived, but none are now. Not sure what is up.
Answer:
Root tips look best when the plant is growing fastest. The exposed colored part of the root is only seen when the root is growing faster than the velamen (that the white part) that covers it. That’s why you never see the pretty tips in the winter even when you’re growing perfectly. Plant growth is too slow in the winter for the root tips to “outrun” the velamen. To maximize root growth during the growing season, go for faster wet/dry cycles. If you grow your plants in a lot of media, they stay wet longer which is fine if you only have time to water once a week. If you like to and have time to baby your plants, you can get away with little to no media (which is how I’ve been growing them because I have to water so often for my mounted plants), and the plants get wet and then dry nearly every day. Just because you may not have root tips as long as they were when you received the plant doesn’t mean you’re doing anything wrong, so don’t worry about that!
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