3 commentaires

1. 

   Snowstorm

   6 months ago

   From what (little) I know. Orchids like a lot of airflow around their roots so a self watering pot might not have enough airflow for it even with orchid bark. Is yours currently in bark only or spag moss? If switching from one to other it’s advised to do it gradually so as to not shock the orchid. Mine were all in spag so I was advised to switch themto 50/50 moss/bark.

   1 j'aime
2. 

   MeasomerPi

   6 months ago

   I agree with Snowstorm, I would not put a phal in a self watering pot. Besides, I’m not sure how a self watering pot works with just bark. It would need a significant amount of fines in the mix to pull the moisture through the media. Give it a good soak as things are easier when hydrated. Take the orchid out of the pot and gently remove the media from the roots. Try get it all, but it’s fine if you have to leave some so you don’t damage the roots. And don’t worry if you damage some roots. It isn’t great but it happens. Just try to minimize as much as possible. Commercially grown phals are stated in dense plug. If your has this, remove all of it. It’s a pain in the tuchus but dramatically improves your chances of success. Examine the roots for health and pests. Trim off any dead or dying roots. Dead roots are papery or mushy, black or brown. Healthy roots are firm and green when wet, silvery when dry. Deeper into the media you may encounter pale yellow roots. It just means they haven’t been exposed to light. They are fine as long as they are firm. I would leave any wrinkled roots as long as they are firm. Use an orchid pot with additional ventilation. They are typically clear so you can monitor root development, and have ventilation holes on the sides of the pot. If you don’t have one, you can add holes to a growers pot or any other plastic pot you have on hand. Size the pot so that the roots just fit in the pot. They like a tight fit. To minimize transplant shock, use a similar mix to what it is currently in. If your plant is in sphagnum, I would repot using a mix of 50% sphagnum 50% bark. That will allow moisture to hang around long enough for the roots to take in what they want without cutting off air circulation. If you are a heavy waterer you can reduce the amount of sphagnum in your mix. My preference is straight bark. The key is a loose airy mix that will allow the roots to dry between waterings. Regardless of what mix you use, gently work it around the roots. I use an old chopstick for the job. The goal is to firmly seat the plant in the pot without packing the media. You want an airy mix that allows the roots to grab the water they want and then dry out. After I’m done, I usually will give it a quick drink to rinse out any loose particles. Good luck!

   2 J'aime
3. 

   Jada

   5 months ago

   So it has these little ropes you tie loosely to the plant and it can suck up as much water as it wants

   0 J'aime