Questions about growing medium for phals

[se7en0ne0ne]

Hi,
I need help finding out what's a good growing medium to use for phals. I wanted to use fir bark alone but I've read it absorbs a lot of nitrogen. So is it really bad to straight fir bark for phals? Should I instead use straight spag moss? What's a recommended growing medium I can use for phals? Help please and thanks!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

In my opinion, growing Phals in straight up moss is perhaps the worse thing any hobbyist can do.

It compacts over time.

There's a possibility as a grower you can pack the moss too tightly.

It stays too wet for too long.

Because the medium can compact over time, get packed in too tight, and stays too wet for too long, the plant's roots can suffocate due to lack of proper air circulation.

Although there's the need to change out potting material on a consistent basis, you have to keep in mind that moss also becomes even more acidic over time, which makes this practice critical. And keep in mind that fresh moss is already acidic.

Naturally speaking, Phals grow on trees with either no moss or very little moss. Which means if you grow in a pot full of moss only, it's already way too much than what the plant would normally encounter.

My number one suggestion for successfully growing a Phal is by mounting them. The second best suggestion is fir bark in which you can ammend it using moss, charcoal, or perlite at your discretion (the need for certain added materials to the media varies for everybody).

[lais817]

the fir bark doesn't "absorb" nitrogen, the microbes breaking it down just use the available nitrogen to help them break it down. You can overcome this by using a high nitrogen fertiliser and feeding regularly. As for the straight sphag, I've never tried it so I can't comment. My phal is growing in gravel and seems really happy

[orchidsamore]

Orchids grow in or on anything.

In Florida it is just about impossible to grow Phals in bark. Phals want to always stay moist. Letting Phals dry and then re-wetting them is the biggest source of rot.

Like other commercial growers I grow all Phals in moss up to 4 inches and then go to a heavy peat, bark, perlite and charcoal mix. And to everyones horror on the Internet, we leave moss in the center of 6 inch pots with the bark peat mix around it. It really does work.

Chose whatever you want for yourself based on your personal watering habits. Keep in mind the need for the plant to stay evenly moist.

[buffalo]

Is acidity a concern as moss, bark , peat, are all acidic as they breakdown.
What advantage is the peat, moss, pearlite over the usual moss and bark?
Growing in Gravel how does that work?
Wow seem to be lots of mediums being used with success

[lais817]

I just fill my pots with granite gravel about 1" - 1 1/2" or so in size, and water it daily pretty much. That said, I'm not expert by any stretch of the imagination, so talk to growers from your climate and go with them I reckon

[Ray]

Choosing Potting Media

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by buffalo

Is acidity a concern as moss, bark , peat, are all acidic as they breakdown.
What advantage is the peat, moss, pearlite over the usual moss and bark?
Growing in Gravel how does that work?
Wow seem to be lots of mediums being used with success

Yes, moss, bark, and peat are all acidic as they break down.

There is a certain point where it can affect the roots of your plants if you don't replace with fresh media. It can cause roots to mysteriously die back, particularly after strong heavy growth.

Think about this one...

Naturally speaking, an epiphytical Phal is mostly growing on a living host tree with living moss. Although quite possibly acidic in nature, the likelihood of them breaking down at the same rate as they would if they were dead and in a constantly wet pot is most likely not the same.

Yeah, in nature, the environment that a Phal grows in is conducive to allowing a dead tree to rot fairly quickly. And in nature, if the tree has died and the branch or trunk has rotted badly (especially when the tree falls to the ground) the survivability of the Phal is very low.

Although in our cultivation, we don't want rotting media, as that's a possible breeding ground for a lot of unwanted nasties.

I dunno, just things to think about.

I like Ray's article btw. It does mention the importance of considering many things when growing, which includes the relevancy of how the plants would be growing in nature.

While there are many possibilities, it comes down to making a choice and seeing how it works. Making adjustments doesn't hurt either.

[se7en0ne0ne]

thanks for the information everyone!

so king of orchids, what medium do you use for phals?
I think I might go for bark with coconut chip mix, has anyone tried something like that?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

I mount all my Phals.