Repotting from wire-wrapped moss pots?

[Rheeseling]

Happy weekend everyone! New poster here, and very amateur orchid grower, so apologies for any terms I get wrong.

I got this arrangement of two different orchids (can only see one from this angle) as a gift at least 5 years ago which came in some sort of a moss-based medium wrapped in wire to resemble a basket.

By random internet reading and sheer luck I have managed to keep them alive and even get them to re-bloom every year (without repotting...eep), but the roots are obviously spilling out more and more and I'm sure they could use repotting. I just don't know how to go about it when the medium is sculpted/packed like this. Should I just plunk the whole thing in an even bigger pot and fill in new mix around the roots? Or have people had experience cutting apart/disassemble the basket? I am afraid of just tearing the entire base apart, roots and all.


Or is this just a lost cause?

Thanks for any advice you may have,
Rheeseling

[estación seca]

Welcome to the Orchid Board!

Wow, that is something. You've done well with it.

The one I see is a hybrid Phlaenopsis. If the other is also, keep in mind that even if you cut off all the roots, they will probably recover with decent care. Of course you don't want to do that, but that knowledge will keep you from being too timid.

I'm guessing most of the healthy roots are outside the basket, but I can't be sure of that. The moss deep inside is probably rotting. I would probably try to remove them from that basket, and pot them up separately.

To do so, put the whole thing into a water bath to soften up the moss, then try to pick out the moss a strand at a time. It will take a long time, and you don't need to do it at one sitting.

Then you might be able gently to lift the plants out of the basket without damaging the roots too much as they come up though the holes in the wire frame.

Once liberated, soak the roots in a bucket until they are very wet. They will be more flexible. Repot the plant separately into the smallest pots that will hold the root systems. Use any medium you are comfortable with. For Phals this size, people use medium to large bark chips; LECA clay balls; horticultural charcoal chunks; large particle horticultural perlite; and combinations thereof.

If you haven't read it, this thread gives some good information on growing Phalaenopsis:
The Phal abuse ends here.

It is accessible via the left yellow menu, Forums; near the top select Beginners; and you will see it as a sticky thread near the top of the listings.

[Rheeseling]

Thank you so much for the detailed and helpful advice! Yes, the other one I think is also Phal (a white one). I will definitely give it a try when I have a nice long stretch of time to pick at the moss, and it's good to know there's hope even if I accidentally mangle the roots. Crossing my fingers...

Reese

[Diane56Victor]

Hope you manage it ok....I'm sure you will, we look forward to seeing the results!

[WaterWitchin]

I'd be inclined to leave it as is. It's sort of turned into mounted Phals after five years time, and it looks pretty cool just like that. Maybe see if you could pick at the moss that's inside the basket, and remove it. Then put a medium to large bark mix in to replace rotting moss. Can't tell from the picture whether that would work, but it would be how I'd go about it.