Growing orchid in bulb pans or other such shallow containers

[Leafmite]

I use basket pots and red lava rock (Angraecums and Cattaleyas) or NZ moss (for Phals and Bulbophyllum). Many of my miniatures are mounted, bare root. I usually avoid bark for orchids but it looks like I will be getting a special bark mix at our Orchid show for the Phaius orchids (already ordered it).

[Fairorchids]

I probably have some 800-1000 Cattleyas in various sizes. Since I need to water all plants on the same schedule (greenhouse being 45 min drive from my house), I use:

2" & 3": Plastic pot with chopped shaghnum/seedling bark mix.
9 cm (3.1/2"):
If plastic, bark mix, coarse
If clay (std height), bark mix (75% coarse/25% sdlg size)
11 cm (4.1/2") to 17 cm (7") clays, always azalea size (2/3 height), with coarse bark mix.
19 cm (7.3/4") and up clays, always bulb pan size (1/3 height), with coarse bark mix

Catt walkeriana only:
Smaller plants in net pots with bark mix
Larger plants in shallow wood baskets with Aliflor nuggets.

This is in part a reflection of Catt roots mostly running shallow, and in part a question of not wasting expensive potting mix.

Lastly, to avoid possibly transferring virus via the heavy duty wire hangers that have a leg inside the pot, I have switched to the type of wire hangers used for annual baskets. This requires drilling 3 holes near the edge (with a diamond tip bit).

[JScott]

Originally Posted by DirtyCoconuts

This is quite interesting.

Could you please tell us what type orchid as well as a picture of the growing area/pot and media

It will certainly assist me in helping you lol

I'm a special ed teacher who works with emotionally disturbed students, and I had to go to a training session right after school today to learn how to legally and safely restrain students who are a danger to themselves or others, and I just got home and I'm beat. Tomorrow, I'll take some pictures for you. But I've mostly got Catts in the bulb pans so far. I have some Phals that need repotting, and I think I'll do those in bulb pans also. I also have a large Oncidium Sharry Baby in a bulb pan that is doing well, although I only recently repotted it, so I haven't seen much change yet. As I have other Oncidiums that get bigger, they'll probably go into the bulb pans as well. But I'll get you some pictures tomorrow.

[DirtyCoconuts]

I have taken that class!!!

When I was a State Attorney, another lifetime, I had a stint in child support and a run in Juvi. They taught all the ASAs who had any physical aptitude that class for courtroom safety and it was the most u comfortable and surreal thing ever. It is hard enough to learn juvenile restraint and disarming maneuvering but add the other component and it is like,” I’ll just let him stab me and then go to the clinic”....

Tough stuff

[Keysguy]

Besides Catts, the other genus that seems to do really well in large bulb pans for me are Encyclia's.

[Ray]

Originally Posted by DirtyCoconuts

the reason i was asking had more to do with the mechanical stability aspect of the root function....the OP has edited their post and now the question is silly anyways so carry on.

I was just asking because i know some of my way tall orchids need to be able to reach deep into something to stay upright.

When newly potted, stability is an issue for any plant. One way of handling that is to pile on the medium, and it helps if the roots go deep. Another is to stake the plant, using skewers, knitting needles or some other “rod” jammed down into the medium, but that won’t work well with shallow containers. That leads to a third option, using wire clips that “grab” the edge(s) of the container.

They can either be configured in an L-shape, acting as a stake the plant can be tied to, or simply as “cross bars” that press down on the roots to keep them firmly placed.

On that last concept, several years ago, a retired, large-scale grower asked me to consider carrying biodegradable stakes used for anchoring heavy duty landscape cloth the the ground. They were sort-of a barbed T shape with the ends of the top curved downward. A U-shaped bent wire was laid on the surface of the medium, “straddling” the plant and two of the stakes were jammed into the medium on either side, hooking the wire. Held quite well, and the stakes, made from PLA (polylactic acid, a plant-based polymer) degraded over time.

[Fairorchids]

If you use clay pots/bulb pans, then the traditional rhizome clips work well - when needed.

Since they come with a straight leg, I usually bend the tip, so that it straddles the rhizome.

[JScott]

Here are some pictures. I didn't really have a problem with stability when repotting. The good roots were pretty much exactly as deep as the new pots I was using, so I just packed the growing media around, and got them to stand up pretty straight. I use a mix of medium Orchiata with stalite and sponge rock and LECA. You can only upload 10 pics at a time, so I'll make another post in just a second with the other 7.

[JScott]

Here are the last of the pics. The pots shown are 8 inch, 10 inch, and 12 inch. That huge one in the 12 inch pot is Lc Dinard 'Blue Heaven', and it has always been a reluctant bloomer for me. I get six or eight new growths a year on it, but I usually only get one bloom a year. One year I got two. When I unpotted it, the roots in the pot were mostly dead. It only had some good ones at the surface. I'm hoping it will be able to thrive in a better pot and maybe I'll get more than one flower a year, which is barely worth it for a plant that takes up so much space. Every year I think about giving it away, and then it blooms and the flower is so perfect and amazing, that I decide to keep it haha. You can see where I experimented with giving it more light, and ended up burning it. But anyway, there it all is.

[JScott]

Originally Posted by DirtyCoconuts

I have taken that class!!!

When I was a State Attorney, another lifetime, I had a stint in child support and a run in Juvi. They taught all the ASAs who had any physical aptitude that class for courtroom safety and it was the most u comfortable and surreal thing ever. It is hard enough to learn juvenile restraint and disarming maneuvering but add the other component and it is like,” I’ll just let him stab me and then go to the clinic”....

Tough stuff

Which system did you use there? We use CPI (Crisis Prevention Institute) Nonviolent Crisis Intervention in Texas. When I was in Oregon we used The Mandt System. In Oklahoma we used CAPE (Creating a Positive Environment). Or is there another one I've never heard of? And yes, it is an uncomfortable experience, however it works. When I have a kid trying to harm himself or somebody else, those restraint holds just come flooding back into my memory, and you just do it, so I guess it works. I don't have to do this very often, maybe once or twice a month, but I've never had an issue or a complaint involving any of my restraints (the paperwork involved is the worst part), so I guess the training sticks somehow, but during the actual training sessions (I have to go once a year) I always think, "How am I going to remember all this in a crisis?" but somehow you do.