Repotting a Phal with buds

[Uh oh now addicted]

Hello everyone!

I have just bought a Yin's Black Eagle and it arrived with a large bud which was unexpected but very welcome!

However it arrived in moss... I don't get on with moss, I'm nowhere near experienced enough to judge it well and my climate isn't that warm. It is something I want to start trying to get to grips with, but with a cheap supermarket Phal I don't mind damaging...

I've bought plants from the same vendor before and repotted immediately in bark with no problems, but I'm a bit wary of doing it with this in case I lose the bud. I've repotted Phals in flower before with no issues (no bud blast to speak of - possibly the odd one) but I know buds are more sensitive and I REALLY want to see this flower!

So... any thoughts? I've searched the forum and can't really see the consensus is that buds are more sensitive, so should I just go for it to get it out of the moss?

OR... should I just be very very very careful about the watering and leave it a dry (to me - probably not in the middle of the moss) to preserve the bud??

Picture attached - (one advantage of this pot is it fits in the dinosaur, but that's secondary to the orchid!)

[Gardening in WM]

Generally I used to repot every new orchid straight away (any orchid). Have done it hundreds of times with no issue but last year I lost a cattleya doing it that was potted in a wooden log type media - one where I had to damage the roots a little and it died so now I try to wait 1 or 2 months to let it acclimatize a bit (and ideally produce new roots) before I do it.
I also have trouble with moss so I weigh the pot and let it dry out once to see what that weight is then I just lightly spray the moss and keep weighing it every few days to see when I need to water it a bit again.

Isn't the Yin's Black Eagle extremely expensive? It looks like it's a week or two away from opening so I'd let this one open it's flower and repot after you've enjoyed the flower for a bit.

Luckily moss does very little damage when repotting so moss is the best media to repot at any time in my opinion but with an expensive one like this I'd wait a bit.

[Uh oh now addicted]

To me it was expensive, but probably because I never pay a lot for an orchid usually! I just couldn't leave it there...

[Ray]

You basically have two choices:

1. Repot it immediately, which risks the loss of the bud.
2. Wait, which may be risking the entire plant.

No matter which one you choose, there are things you can do to reduce the risk.

As your choice of potting medium will be significantly different from the moss, make sure to prewet it before use and keep it moist as the plant grows new roots.

If your choice is to wait, then you can a baby it a bit setting the pot in a shallow tray and only water from the bottom. That way, the moss will wick up the water to keep itself moist without the fear of top-down watering filling the voids and suffocating the roots.

[Roberta]

I have found Phals to be pretty forgiving of potting in bud or in bloom. Handle gently(biggest danger to the bud is to physically bump it) , don't try to take off all the old medium.

With the bud that close to opening, if it were my plant I'd wait, water carefully, determining when it needs it, the "weight" method is great. The way the "weight" method can be used, weigh the pot on a kitchen scale or postal scale right after watering. Weigh the next day, etc... when the rate of weight loss slows down (not much more water to evaporate) it's time to water again. Water based on need not by the calendar. Once the bud opens, it is also likely to be more forgiving... changes in conditions can cause buds to blast, fully-opened flowers less fragile.

[Clawhammer]

Moss + terra cotta pot + heat matt is a foolproof formula for phal success IMO. Easy too. Just water when the moss becomes crunchy dry on top.

[Mugsie]

I've repotted numerous Phals which were either in bud or blooming with zero problems. Just be very careful of the roots. Strip away as much of the old medium as you can and repot gently in bark. Make sure the plant isn't wobbly and you'll be good to go. Soaking prior to removing and repotting helps, then wait a few days before watering again. Also, pre-water the bark which also helps. Best of luck to you.

[Dimples]

I also repot phals very quickly upon arrival, even when they’re in bloom, with no observed issues. If the phal needs to stay in the moss for awhile for whatever reason, I set the pot on a towel after watering (moss must make direct contact with the towel) to suck out as much excess water as possible. This leaves the moss evenly damp and airy.

I don’t wait to water after repotting from moss to bark. I water daily/every second day to replicate the always damp conditions the roots are accustomed to. I’ve found if I don’t water regularly the old roots are more likely to suffer and decline from the dramatic change.

[Dalachin]

I have had some phals sulk after repotting, especially species and specialty hybrids, sometimes for months. My current method to avoid this is to leave the plant in it's clear moss pot until I see new growth in the roots, usually 2-3 weeks for a healthy plant. Some plants I leave for longer if they had a hard shipping journey. During this time I water the moss carefully... sort of like what "Gardening in WM" said but without the scale.

When I do repot I try to disturb the roots as little as possible... remove the medium carefully, soak in Kelpak, put back in as small a pot as I can fit the roots into (or mount).

I've never had buds blast on a Phal due to repotting.

Since I started waiting for new growth, repotted and mounted Phals have taken to their new medium much more quickly with less sulking.

[Uh oh now addicted]

Thank you very much everyone. I'll wait and be very careful with the watering, from below and using weight as a guide. Once it's opened I'll repot - I'm pleased that I do a combination of Ray's, Mugsie's and Dimples' advice already and it seems to work, I'm just a bit paranoid about this one!

I'll update if it flowers!