I think I can, I think I can…

I came home from my nerd vacation yesterday afternoon fully expecting to find that The Orchid That Won’t Die had finally given up the ghost. Before I left for San Diego, its big leaf had started to shrivel a bit and curl up around the edges, so I assumed it was truly on its way out. As soon as I got home from the airport, I entered my orchid room and saw that the leaf had shriveled further and started turning yellow:

The orchid that won't die
Yellowing leaf…not a good sign

Then I took a closer look and realized that the orchid is GROWING A NEW LEAF!!

Orchid's new leaf!
New leaf growing! Amazing!!

Not only is it amazing that the orchid is growing a new leaf, I think there may be a new root starting to swell from the root base — you can see a small green pimply-looking thing in this photo:

new orchid root?
Could it possibly be a new root??

If this orchid is actually recovering I might have to declare myself the Orchid Rescue Master. I just can’t believe that this plant has started to sprout a new leaf when it doesn’t even have any roots to soak up nutrients! Unreal. Orchids are just chock full of surprises!

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4 comments

  1. Well done. The plant has been drawing everything it needed from that large leaf, it’s probably taken all it can get now. Soon that new root will emerge and help the remaining small leaf provide what the plant needs to grow new leaves and more roots.
    Here’s what happened with a badly damaged and rare Phalaenopsis species I recieved http://bit.ly/9zq8BH It’s truly amazing how they can make a come-back.
    Bill.

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