Purple Edged Leaves
Still learning how to care for my orchid, and today I've got a new question. Her leaf seems to have taken on some purple at the edges, and I'm wondering what it means! #help #questions #Orchid #PhalaenopsisOrchid
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Did she come with purple flowers?
Sometimes they come dyed to make the flowers brighter and colorful. Colors they don't come in in nature.
They do it to color white phal orchids.
If it was colored like that. The color will fade in the leaves in time and the next flowering will be white.
I just know that because years ago my hubby bought me a bright pink one for valentines. I was like, "I don't think that's a natural color!". Sure enough it was not and the color faded in time and now the leaves are all a normal green with no pink edges.
They inject the dye into the flower spike, but some of the dye works its way down into the leaves as well.
Sometimes they come dyed to make the flowers brighter and colorful. Colors they don't come in in nature.
They do it to color white phal orchids.
If it was colored like that. The color will fade in the leaves in time and the next flowering will be white.
I just know that because years ago my hubby bought me a bright pink one for valentines. I was like, "I don't think that's a natural color!". Sure enough it was not and the color faded in time and now the leaves are all a normal green with no pink edges.
They inject the dye into the flower spike, but some of the dye works its way down into the leaves as well.
@Sunflower159 Some of my orchids gets a darker color on their leaves, or gets more purple when in more light/sun😃 One of them gets a really pretty purple/red color, but then I know it is probably time to move her a little out of the sun😅 I don't have a very good picture of the red/purple🤔 They might also go more red/purple when too dry, but then it is usually not only the edges, and you will also feel they are soft and not firm.
Yours looks great though!🪴 I think it is the lighting that have given yours more color😊
Yours looks great though!🪴 I think it is the lighting that have given yours more color😊
If it’s getting excessive bright light, it is likely a response to that… the plant version of a tan trying to protect itself from too much light. If it’s getting a ton of light, you may want to move it a little further from the window and see how it responds.
If the flowers had a lot of purple color, the leaves can also be more prone to showing purple color. Some orchids naturally have some amount of purple in their leaves, though if that were the case with yours I don’t think you’d be asking this question because it wouldn’t be a new thing you noticed. So the purple you’re seeing is the plant responding to some form of stress (most likely light, possibly exacerbated by other factors)
The leaves look more or less healthy in that they are firm, but the leaf has some texture and inconsistent color and is twisting in a way that makes me think you’ve moved it around (changed the direction of its light source). If you haven’t done that, other possible causes for stress purpling and leaf observations are:
- Pests: give the plant a close look (especially under the leaves) to see if anything is chewing on it (for things not visible to the eye, pest signs will often be in the form of black debris or little webs)
- if you’re putting any sort of oil or leaf shine product on the leaves, stop — it smothers them
- nutrient deficiency. Has it ever been fertilized? If not, get an orchid fertilizer (specifically something labeled as Orchid Fertilizer or MSU Orchid Fertilizer, follow the instructions to dilute a small amount in a gallon of distilled water and application frequency instructions)
If the flowers had a lot of purple color, the leaves can also be more prone to showing purple color. Some orchids naturally have some amount of purple in their leaves, though if that were the case with yours I don’t think you’d be asking this question because it wouldn’t be a new thing you noticed. So the purple you’re seeing is the plant responding to some form of stress (most likely light, possibly exacerbated by other factors)
The leaves look more or less healthy in that they are firm, but the leaf has some texture and inconsistent color and is twisting in a way that makes me think you’ve moved it around (changed the direction of its light source). If you haven’t done that, other possible causes for stress purpling and leaf observations are:
- Pests: give the plant a close look (especially under the leaves) to see if anything is chewing on it (for things not visible to the eye, pest signs will often be in the form of black debris or little webs)
- if you’re putting any sort of oil or leaf shine product on the leaves, stop — it smothers them
- nutrient deficiency. Has it ever been fertilized? If not, get an orchid fertilizer (specifically something labeled as Orchid Fertilizer or MSU Orchid Fertilizer, follow the instructions to dilute a small amount in a gallon of distilled water and application frequency instructions)