Hello

I have a orchid which I repotted (I have no idea why and now I am regretting) it seems to be dying the stick is brown when i repotted some of the roots seemed to start looking black and gross but at the end they were fat and green- I did not cut them off because I have no idea if they were okay or not.

The top three leaves are fat and healthy but the new one is limp and yellowish.

I will do anything to keep it alive!

Your orchid is a Phalaenopsis and it is in bad shape. It has rot, and there is not much you can do to save it.
Please read our thread here in the Orchid Forums entitled Growing Supermarket Orchids-Phalaenopsis. It may help you in the future.
The brown stick, the old bloom spike is dead and is not coming back. It should be completely removed.
Your orchid seems to have very little in the way of live roots. There is very little water being absorbed by the roots hence the new leaf can't be supported and it is dying back, getting soft and yellow looking!
You repotted into media, the bark with chunks that are too large and open making it difficult for it to hold enough water long enough to bring the plant back. Your pot is too large for the root system, what little of it there is. Most
Likely the plant needed to be repotted 2-3 months ago. Even with experience with growing Phalaenopsis, this plant will be difficult to save.
If you go to the American Orchid Societies web site, www.aos.org, at the top of the page, there are free downloadable and printable culture sheets including one on Phalaenopsis. This might be of help in the future. They are located within one of the pull downs.
Your root system suffered so much and died back that no one can accurately say whether it was underwatered or overwatered because in both instances, the roots die!
My suggestion to you would be to throw it away and start over but only if you are armed with the knowledge that I have suggested.
Continue to read through our forums on orchids, read and learn. But I am sorry, there isn't much hope for that plant.

Thank you for the advice

If I wanted to attempt to save what shall I do?
I really feel awful throwing it away.

Thanks

Let me try this again. I do not see any live roots. That is difficult to overcome.
You can try putting it in a 3" plastic pot, shady and tight in long fibered New Zealand spagnum moss. It may put out a few new roots in 4-6 weeks. More roots in 6-8 weeks. But then again, it may continue to decline.
The moss should be damp, not soaked and not dry. Put it in very little light.
Anchor it into the pot with a rhizome clip. If you can understand everything I am saying you have a chance of bringing it back. I would have no better then a 50-50 chance with all of my experience. You would honestly have LESS then a 1-10 chance. If you want to beat those odds, go ahead and try.
I would rather see you throw it away and get another one. Read, learn and enjoy the new plant and hopefully grow it better. I feel that your desire to save something that you feel that you messed up with is admireable, but foolish!

Let me ask you a question and I am serious, I am not trying to be funny or disrespectful but if you managed with a lack of orchid knowledge to put the Phalaenopsis in this kind of a bad situation Firsttimeorchidgrow, what makes you think that you can turn this around?
You still lack the required experience and knowledge.

to the forum Firsttime, you have come to the right place.

Come on Bill, things are not that dire. The best way a new grower will learn is by reading - and doing.

I do see a red flag however, the pot is sitting in a cachepot, that is a no no. The roots do need air so get that pot out so it can drain well after watering and let fresh air get in to the roots.

It has been my experience that today's Phals are not as complicated as other orchids. Mine get watered when I think of it , generally are in bright sunny locations and are in pots way too large :thumbsdown:. This is all wrong, I know it, but they still thrive. Do you think they have sneaked weed dna into Phals?

Read all those stickies at the top of the Orchid forum, especially the Phals/Grocery Store one. I have a good feeling that your plant will recover and if not, you have gained valuable experience for growing your next orchid.

I disagree. For this particular plant it is that dire.

I totally agree that Phalaenopsis are one of the easiest orchids to grow. They are forgiving as one learns how to care for them. But, when all the roots are gone, that increases the degree of difficulty. It will be at least 6 months before it has recovered enough to bloom. But it could be more then a year.
So for my money, I would toss it so I don't have to watch it suffer. And then maybe get a new one. Or get a new one and keep the old.

In that last photo, I can see a bit of root, so give it a try.

Oh Alice that was a good catch!! about the pot.

First, get it out of the decorative pot. Either grow it in a clay or a plastic pot with adequate drainage holes. NOT within a pot within another pot! This leads to watering issues. When you water it stays too wet and rots roots. It blocks drainage and air movement.

I agree with Bill, about tossing it or getting a new one and keeping this one.

Well, know that there IS a learning curve with each orchid, and that's how you gain knowledge. Don't feel bad, sometimes it's best to just try again!

Firsttime
One question I have is whether it is the oldest leaf that is dying off and not a new one. Is it the leaf in the second photo that is dying? If so, that is an old leaf.

Personally, I would try to save it. I would consider it a learning experience and who knows, maybe you will be successful.

The person with surely the most experience here gave excellent advice!
Perhaps we should ask ourselves if it is prudent to always give the kind advice, not to discourage a newcomer? I am torn!

Great question! This string had made me ponder this morning why we get emotionally tied to a plant, myself included! I was thinking, why am I keeping this one plant that looks like its dying, then it rebounds. Then it looks like it's dying, then it rebounds. 3 years it's been doing this and waiting, thinking it'll pull through.... well it's because I have it tied to a moment in my history that I struggled, then made it past that time. I realized today, I'm way past that, why not garden for success? So IMO, it's good to hear "time to move on".

Melissa, I hear you! Many times I hang on to an Orchid, although it is just about dead and even the rescued piece is doing less than just resting. ( Monty Python Dead Parrot sketch anyone? )
Then I figure, keep it a Summer outside, perhaps it will rebound. Fall comes, it looks just as "restful" as it did in the Spring. Out it goes! Compost, finally!
But, in the long run I have gotten better at this! I nowadays toss a totally hopeless plant a bit quicker, especially if it is easily and cheaply available. The good part is - that tossed plant just made room for a nice new one, or it gives an older, well growing plant more room.

Firsttimeorchidgrow; Perhaps you paid too much for this plant being from London, but here in the States.... Phals are so common.. they're showing up in Grocery Stores like Tomato plants !

We've _ALL killed a few orchids ! That said, the energy needed to bring your plant back from Death's door would be better spent on buying a New one...