Osmunda fiber

[ronaldhanko]

Has anyone ever heard of the old practice of potting orchids in osmunda? It's the roots of a fern, I believe, and is an old way of growing orchids. The first two orchids I ever received, a Paph and a Epicat were potted in osmunda (I received them from a man who was the head groundskeeper for Mrs. Vincent Astor and who was of the "old school'). At the time he gave me my first orchids the practice was already outdated, but I still have some of the osmunda he gave me and use if for a few orchids, though not as he used it.