I think I over-repotted... help?

[AnitadeWaard]

Hi all, fairly new to orchids but completely smitten. In my newbie enthusiasm, however, I think I have over-repotted e.g. my Miltassia (Lavender Kiss, Lavender Taffy) and a Cattleya (Blc. Lawless Zauberflotte Palmer's Orange)! They weren't doing great (miltassia's leaves started to yellow, (fig 1 and 2) and Cattleya was looking peakish (fig 4, no new growth etc.) so I was worried I had over-watered them and repotted them (Miltassia to a pot instead of a basket (fig 3) and Plc to a basket instead of a pot (fig 5)!). But now I worry (again) that I over-repotted them: pics enclosed of the plants, the roots, and the new situation.... Anything I can do at this point, except let the poor plants a rest from my overzealous activities? Should I feed/water/more or less... ? Thank you for any insights!

[AnitadeWaard]

PS No idea why all the images are sideways, they're right side up on my phone and my computer. Thanks anyway!

[Roberta]

I think now, just let them grow. The Miltassia should be quite happy in that plastic pot - they like to stay on the moist side. And the Catt will be very happy in that basket - those like to dry out between waterings, and I have found that they do better in wood baskets than in any sort of pot (roots love that wood). Ideal timing would be when you first see new roots, but sometimes one needs to do it at other times if the plant isn't doing well. Now, orchids teach patience... you may not see a response for several months. So no more fussing, let them do their thing.

The sideways presentation of photos is an artifact of the website software. If files are downloaded to desktop, and saved, more of them come out in the correct orientation. Just one of life's little annoyances.

[AnitadeWaard]

Thank you Roberta -- patience is certainly a lesson I can use! Will leave them for now and make sure the Cattleya dries between waterings, the Miltassia not so much... Thanks again!

[ArronOB]

I assume by ‘overpotted’ you mean moving them into a larger then ideal pot size.

If photos 3 and 5 are post-repotting then neither appears to me to be overpotted - in fact I would have chosen larger pots.

The whole overpotting thing is a bit suspect anyway. I haven’t heard of any convincing mechanism by which orchids can detect the size of the pot they are in or by what mechanism a larger pot would impede their growth. I think it reflects more that each potting style has characteristics in terms of moisture retention and air flow, which may or may not suit your cultural practices.

[Roberta]

The concept of "overpotting" - pot too large for the orchid - is related to moisture retention. Since for a given height of pot, the volume increases by the cube of the radius while the area increases as the square. So larger diameter pots will have a lot of volume in the middle where there isn't good air circulation, and it tends to stay too wet. With large bark or inorganic medium this problem is reduced. If an open basket is used, the problem is reduced even more. For a mounted plant, it doesn't matter how big the mount is. So... the issue isn't really "over potting" , it is "over-wetting" and "under-airing". When one has a plant with a robust root system, especially if they're very spread out, one way of accommodating the roots in a large pot without having a big lump of wet medium in the middle is to invert a smaller pot in the middle, having the effect of filling the center of the pot with air.

[AnitadeWaard]

Thank you so much Roberta, and ArronOB! I do understand the idea behind the small pots being that there is just too much room for a the roots to rot... My question wasn't really about the pot size, though, it was about the fact that I had repotted the orchids twice already in the last month (fidgetting about pot size, pot type etc.) and I suddenly realized that that in itself was causing root stress, because of course the roots need time to connect to the new medium, etc.

The whole watering schedule is still a tad mystifying to me -- trying the skewer approach and the weight approach, and trying to under-water everything except the Paph and the Phal == but my mistake is that I'm probably over-thinking and after all, overwatering, in the urge to Do Something, rather than wait, as Roberta so sagely suggests...

Anyway, this is all fascinating and I can't wait to see what will happen over the weeks and months with these incredible little plants!

Have a lovely holiday all of you in the US -- peace and orchids!