Hi Lisa,

If you had wanted an established plant, there were many US vendors selling
great plants at reasonable prices. That is not what you bought. You bought
some of the best and newest clones fresh out of Taiwan. You know the clones
are true because you bought them in bloom. Imported plants do not come with
established root systems, to pass ag inspection they must be ripped out of
their mix and sent bare root or wrapped in fresh moss. I have much better
luck importing plants bare root, but a bare rooted plant would not last four
days in the Roc.

Now that you have the plants you will need to graduate to advance orchid
growing to get them reestablished. Break down the flower spike, it will be
a year or two before you see the plant blooming again. Remove the plants
from their 'pots' and remove the moss that was used to wrap the roots.
Throw both away. Run your fingers down the roots and remove any soft
tissue. I do not remove the firm, but broken roots because I think they
help anchor the plant until the new roots get started. Assume all the roots
are going to die and select the new pot accordingly, I reported mine into
3" pots which were even smaller than the 'pot' they arrived in. I will grow
the new plants in the seedling section for at least six months treating it
like it was a plant just out of flask. I loss 25 to 50 percent. As the
plant get established it is going to tap the leaves for energy and you are
going to loss a couple. Plant I bought from 'Jane' last year are now either
dead or establish with four leaves, two weak looking things that came with
the plant and two fresh healthy ones that have grown over the last year.
They are blooming with a couple of flowers. Next year they should be great
looking plants.

When Orchis has a clone I really want, I buy three. This year I bought one
'Red Cat', I only wanted the pollen, if the plant lives great.

Next year you might consider attending my wife's lecture on Friday. She
spends a lot of time talking about what needs to be considered to be a wise
orchid consumer.

Good luck with the plants, if you can keep them alive, you will have some of
the coolest and most unique plants around.

Pat


"Lisa" wrote in message
oups.com...
Thank you all for your comments. I kind of knew there was nothing I
can do. Even if I went back to the show they might have done anything.
I would be just wasting my precious time away from my girls or would
be dragging them out in the rain. I was just so disappointed at that
moment. I have learnt my lesson. It would have been cheaper and
faster to just buy from HomeDepot. I understand if one plant was
like that but all of them. That was just too much. I bag them all up
in plastic bags, hopefully they will survive and get new roots. Thank
you all again.