brassavola in coir?

[missann]

I am brand new to this genus, brassavola, and I got a plant mounted on a board in sphag. The plant is very small, like the size of a dollar bill. I want to pot it in coir in an appropriately small pot. It didn't seem to like the mount, as the center of the roots are all dead, with just the ones on the outside growing up the mount, and away from the sphag. In my experience, orchids seem to like sphag, and take to growing new roots into it very quickly after being repotted. I think it is too small to be potted in my schultz mix.

Also, I have read to keep this plant "evenly moist." Does that mean it needs to be moist like a phal, or approach dryness? I don't trust lots of info that I read online because sometimes whoever wrote it accidentally writes the wrong thing or is just plain wrong. I would like at least two people to tell me how to water this thing.


Oh, I don't pot in straight coir. I use a mix of coir, pearlite, and charcoal.

[unhappykat]

I wouldn't pot a brassavola, especially nodosa and other semi pendulous species. These plants really like to be mounted, which is how their flowers are presented best. If its a B. Nodosa or hybrid of it I would keep it on the mount but I would pull it off and put some fresh moss under. I dont keep mine moist at all times, I find they like a quick dry out with regular water but not daily maybe every other or so. I have had Brassavolas sit in pots for months just slowly rotting away and once I mount them they go crazy with growth. I find cork to be the best medium for mounting, they do okay with fern though. It is best to put some pictures so we can have a visual of the problem. It might br that the moss that is there is rotting and holding too much water near the center of the plants. When you say board do you mean plaqu of cork or similar material or do you actually mean a piece of lumber?

[missann]

Here are some pics:

[missann]

Oh yeah, they said this is a blooming size plant, but how big do they get? I always thought they would be bigger than that. Also, how big are the flowers.

Oh-it is a pure brassavola nodosa.

These pics are after I cut out all the dead roots. There was a huge mass of them, they just pulled right off. I have been growing for a long time, so I know dead roots when I see them.
I didn't know they were pendulous. Do the spikes come out the bottom, or do they come out of the top and just hang down? I know there are some orchid species that the spikes come out of the bottom like some of the coelogynes? I think it is that genus that must be grown in baskets because the spikes come straight down through the potting media and out the bottom.

Oh, one more q. What kind of watering is required in the winter? Just water less, like other evergreen orchids, or stop watering all together?

[unhappykat]

Okay, your plant was suffering from either being over watered or mis treated. I would find a piece of cork of fern if available and place a small pad of moss directly on the wood then on the plant to help with shock. This species will continue to grow on a long rhizome that will eventually, if mounted, become air borne and send out flowers from the point where the leaf is attached to the small bulb, stem, that connects it to the rhizome, just like a cattleya sheaths out from the leaf joint. This plant is near blooming sized but not quite there yet, maybe in a year with better conditions. I allow mine to completely dry out between waterings reguardless of season, it just takes longer in winter usualy about a week as compared to every other day in summer. This species doesnt spike out of the bottom of the basket, you are thinking of the Stanhopea alliance, this plant will produce a long inflorescence that will arch and hang horizontally from the mount carrying several flowers that are extemely fragrant. This plant is a fast grower so you shouldn't have too much trouble with it. I grow it with Cattleyas.

[isurus79]

B nodosas like to dry out. Give it LOTS of light and let it dry completely after being watered. You can mount it or put it in a pot with a very FAST drying media, such as cork or large bark chunks (basically just like unhappykat said!). The piece of wood that your nodosa was mounted on almost appears to have been treated with some sort of chemical treatment! That could very well have sent your plant into a tailspin and I would definitely recommend attaching it to a piece of cork or set it in a small wood basket.

As for watering habits in winter, this plant will tell you when to water. If it's putting out new growth, water more often, if not, water less! You cant go wrong with these guys so enjoy and dont forget to post pics when it blooms!

[Dorothy]

Although it doesn't indicate on the tag, you might have B. nodosa 'Mickey Mouse' .. check out Ross' in this thread -
Brassavola sp. 'Mickey Mouse'

[D&S Mabel]

I have my B. Nodosa in a pot and it's never exactly excelled in growth or blooming. Healthy plant but I didn't buy it for the green growth. I think I'll try mounting it to a fir slab (as I don't have any cork handy)and see what I get.

Unhappycat, when you say "other semi pendulous species" perfer to be mounted, would that include hybrids like Brassocattleya or Brassolaelia?

Thanks

[Ray]

For one, I don't consider a B. nodosa to be pendulous. I have several mounted, and they tend to grow upward, like the one shown in this thread. Even the more pendulous species, like B. cucullata, when crossed with catts, tend to be upright.

In any case, B. nodosa, having thick, fleshy, terete leaves, can dry out between waterings with no issue, making it a great candidate for mounting.

[Lagoon]

I keep mine in sphag with 30% large perlite, potted in plastic. It's doing wonderful. Allow some drying time in between waterings.