Moss and bark layering question

[KE8ICR]

I have been trying to save a NOID Phal I got at a grocery store. It was blooming when I bought it, but it was potted in a thin plastic "cup" with no holes, and spagnum moss packed very tightly around the roots.I noticed it was starting to get root rot so I decided to repot it. The leaves were and still are limp. When I repotted (remember I am a newbie) I removed all the old moss, and cut all the dead roots. I put it in a willow basket with more spagnum moss but loosely. This didn't help and in fact the root rot got worse. I decided to watch some videos on You Tube to get some idea of what I should do next. After watching one of the videos, I started a routine for about 5 days of soaking the roots in diluted tea water with a minute amount of rooting hormone all day and pulling it out to dry all night, and repeated this process for 5 days. Well you'd think Ol green thumbs here would have killed it off completely by now, but what few roots that are left plumped up and got greener and that gave me hope. While the leaves are still limp, the roots have improved some so I decided it's time to put it. This time I bought some bark. I got the (brilliant LOL) idea that if I put some moss in the bottom of the pot, put the bark on top of that, then put in the orchid so none of the roots came in contact with the moss, the humidity might stay higher without causing root rot. Please advise on the wisdom of this decision. Thanks

[aliceinwl]

Depending on how much moss and what grade bark and watering and temperatures it may or may not be a problem. If the moss tends to stay wet long after the bark dries, I can see it making watering challenging as the longest roots would be perpetually wet and the shorter ones would be too dry. A lot of folks have success mixing small clumps of moss with the bark to uniformly increase moisture retention. If you just repotted it, maybe try something like that?

I’ve had mixed results with leaves regaining turgor. Sometimes they never do and you just have to wait for new growth. Root recovery is a great sign.

[ArronOB]

Basically, I do what you suggest in your opening post with orchids which are having problems rehydrating for whatever reason. I intertwine the sphagnum and bark, though there is much less moss then bark. I usually put a layer of sphagnum on top, where it’s fully accessible, so I can pull this off if I feel the mix is staying too moist, or when the plant is finally rehydrated. I’ve had good success with this method with stressed-out rescue phals.

I should point out that I do it this way because all my orchids are watered simultaneously, and so they all have to adjust to the same watering regime. If I had the time to water individually then I might think differently.

[Ray]

Roots need water, not humidity.

As epiphytic orchids do much of their gas exchange processes through their roots, as opposed to only leaves as is the case with terrestrial plants, the trick is to have a potting medium that can hold water well while remaining open and airy at all times so the roots won't suffocate. If you achieve that, you can water at will.

[KE8ICR]

Thanks for your response. I will try your suggestion