general phal questions

[Chiral224]

Hi all,

Ok these are some silly q's, but bear with me

I have a beautiful phal that is doing very well in sphag. It still has its blooms and is throwing roots and leaves out like crazy!! I'm not sure how much its pot is going to hold, but I'm not sure when to replant it? It may also be throwing out another spike on the existing one as I feel a hard knobby ().
I'd love to replant it in one of those square glass vases that you see in show homes etc...but how does one do it without any drainage??

What are the normal stages for phals? I thought maybe they grew roots when they were done resting and ready to spike? I have another one I cut the spike off of and its not doing anything.

Thanks for helping

[RosieC]

My Phals are all different.

One of them will grow leaves, spikes, and roots all at the same time. Another does not seem to have grown anything in the 6 months I've owned it. One is growing roots a little along with a leaf and started doing that soon after the flowers had finished. Others do other combinations of things.

I find luke warm water has prompted root growth in some, but not all of them.

Personally I would not try and grow any orchid in a pot with no drainage. I don't think it's a good idea for long term care of the plant. Show homes probably get away with it because they just trash the plant when it's done and get a new one.

[jkofferdahl]

The question of when to repot is kind of a tricky one. Many growers like to repot a new plant as soon as they get it home, then closely watch the potting media for breakdown and repot as soon as it does. I personally don't do well growing in sphagnum and so repot anything in it immediately, but otherwise just watch the media for signs of breaking down. 18-24 months has been typical in my experience.

As Rosie mentioned, a pot with no drainage is a bad idea. Those in show-homes are tossed quickly. No drainage leads quickly to root rot, and root rot is a really bad thing. You can find glass vases with drainage; better still, use a well-slotted, clear plastic pot so that you can see what's going on with the roots in the pot.

The most normal thing about a Phalaenopsis is that they don't do anything normally. When healthy and happy they will grow roots freely. One or two leaves a year are normal, but some may grow one while the plant right next to it grows three in the same year. Typically, the majority of Phals, especially species, bloom in the early spring, but just to make sure we don't count on that as a pattern there are some which bloom at other times of the year, and even a few which bloom whenever they darn-well please. I have a Phal. Intermedia which bloomed just on time, late winter to early Spring, and which is now sending up a new spike, completely off-cycle.

Phals are rather contrary. I've learned to give them the best possible conditions and then to sit back and smile whenever they do anything at all!

[Chiral224]

Thanks! Nice to know they are all unpredictable

I was thinking the same thing on the show home orchids. Its sad really.

I've had pretty good luck with phals in sphag as long as I am really careful on watering. I'd love to find some clear plastic pots, but where are they? I've looked at local nurserys big and small, hydroponic shops, even walmart!

This phal had started bloom early feb. I've been waiting for it to drop them so I could repot...especially with the good root growth going on I guess just sit back and keep being pleasantly surprised by it. It must be happy!

[Doc G]

Most of the online orchid sellers that have a "supplies" tab will offer a variety of pots. OakHillGardens.com has them in various sizes. I've seen them on other sites as well.

[Chiral224]

Originally Posted by Doc G

Most of the online orchid sellers that have a "supplies" tab will offer a variety of pots. OakHillGardens.com has them in various sizes. I've seen them on other sites as well.

I've tried them and others...problem is, they wont ship to canada. I'll keep looking though