Question
I've purchased 2 phals. and received one for a gift. The first one had a few yellow spots when I bought it. I repotted it in a western fir mix and it had pretty bad root rot when I repotted it. It did well for a couple of weeks and then the buds started dying and it was downhill from there. After it had passed I checked what was left of it and it was completely black in the middle where the leaves once where, but some of the roots looked like they had started to bounce back. About a month ago I received the others the one I purchased is going through the same thing but the gift's leaves began to fall off one by one even though they were still nice and green. I dry them off thoroughly after watering, treated with fungicide, basically babied them and they are just declining rapidly. Could you try to help me save them or give me advice for my next attempt on caring for them?  

Answer
Hello Ashley,

From your description of what has been happening with your phals, it sounds like you may be getting water on the leaves.  You didn't say when you water them but if it is in the late afternoon or evening, that is the worst time to do it.  It is best to water in the early morning to allow any water on the leaves to evaporate by nightfall.  As you noted on the one that died earlier, the center was completely black.  That indicates it had a fungal infection due to water left overnight.  Fungus spores love cool wetness of evening and can mushroom overnight and slowly kill a leaf or the entire plant.  Also, as an added preventative, there should be some light air movement around it to help dry the phal leaves after you watered it.  

If you look at the latest gift phal, you may see a black sooty substance at the base of the leaf, that is a sure sign of fungus.  Treating it with a fungicide is okay but you would have to do this regularly to prevent any possible new fungal infection from occuring.  It is better and easier to make it a habit to inspect the plants and remove any fungus as soon as possible.  

One watering method to prevent any possible fungus damage is to water the pot from the bottom rather than the top.  Place the pot in a deep bowl then add lukewarm water into the bowl and not the pot until the water is just below the top of the potting media.  Allow it to sit in the bowl for about 30 minutes, remove it and allow excess water to drain before placing it back to where you grow it.  

By the way, it is possible to remove any new fungus growths by wiping the black areas with a Q-tip and alcohol but this must be done within 24 hours of it forming and infecting the leaf.  

Hope this helps you save them.  If you have other questions or would like more information about the above, write back and I'll try to help with them.  Good luck.  

Jim Kawasaki
San Jose, Ca.