Don’t mean to hijack your thread but trying to be helpful. It is possible the Kelp increased the blooming.
If you are concerned about virus you need to make sure you are not spreading it. Your close growing conditions with roots growing out of the pots, is a recipe for disaster. Also, do not reuse any pots, mix, tags, stakes, etc. Some people will clean and bake clay pots (400 degrees 2 hours) and reuse them, however with a known virused plant, it can be ill advised to reuse a clay pot even that you have “cleaned/baked”, especially from a known virused plant . I do bake metal rhizome clips after washing in detergent. Orchid viruses can live on surfaces, literally, for years. And with a porous surface, it’s very hard to eradicate it, if at all.
Regarding your two plants, I have mini phals that grow like this. The one with the cupped leaves freaked me out too. The first couple of leaves were normal, then the leaves were rounded and irregular. However, it is the way that particular cultivar grows in my case, as I’ve seen others.
You’ve got to also remember if you were lifting and taking to a sink to water, every plant you touch the roots of, etc., potentially can infect the next one. Our hands and certain insects (scale, thrips) are the biggest spreaders of virus from plant to plant. If possible, keep plants from touching each other. I always test before repotting. If virus is present everything goes out, saucer and all. Remember run-off can infect plants.
I use plastic saucers, not clay and the plants are always moved/watered on their saucers so roots growing out of the bottom don’t touch other surfaces. Disinfect your surfaces (I use Super SaniCloth wipes like they use in hospitals) and keep the surface wet for 2 min with the wipe. All plastic (I don’t re-use pots) saucers are washed with detergent, then soaked in strong 15-20% bleach solution bleach for at least an hour. And I soak and flame my clippers. Soak in super sat TSP, then wipe handle with the wipe, then flame the blade with MAP gas. Or use razor blades where possible. Very laborious, but growing indoors under lights in tight quarters (9x12 grow room) requires this of me if I endeavor to be virus free. I have some original heirloom plants that a clean, so consider it a responsibility to protect something that’s stayed clean for over 100 years.
Oh, and I don’t take plants to shows/meetings with roots growing out of pot. And anything I take to a show, is tested about a month, and then 6 months after. They are touched by a lot of hands being displayed and/or judged.
