Spike damage, sphag moss, two plants in one pot!

[stefpix]

What about peroxyde instead of listerine?

[redperphexion]

Wow! thanks... what would I do without all this help!

I love the idea of mounting - it sounds (and from what I've seen, looks) so beautiful. I am hesitant, though, since they are rescues and these are my first 'chid kids. Now that you mention the humidity factor, I'm even more hesitant... although my bathroom (unfortunately) stays fairly humid after my hot morning showers... although because of this I tend to super-clean it with some fairly harsh cleaners to keep the yucky at bay.

Are orchids very sensitive to toxins and chemicals? (From what I hear they are...)

Can I pot them for now, and then mount them later? Or is moving them too much a big risk?

I like the idea of dousing them twice a day and letting them be bare rooted and dry out the rest of the time for now - I have a feeling/I hope it will help ward off bacterial growth.

Also, maybe this question is silly, but are they easy to propigate? Can I take a cutting or something to grow a baby in case they don't make it? I have a feeling they're not...

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by redperphexion

Wow! thanks... what would I do without all this help!

I love the idea of mounting - it sounds (and from what I've seen, looks) so beautiful. I am hesitant, though, since they are rescues and these are my first 'chid kids. Now that you mention the humidity factor, I'm even more hesitant... although my bathroom (unfortunately) stays fairly humid after my hot morning showers... although because of this I tend to super-clean it with some fairly harsh cleaners to keep the yucky at bay.

Are orchids very sensitive to toxins and chemicals? (From what I hear they are...)

Can I pot them for now, and then mount them later? Or is moving them too much a big risk?

I like the idea of dousing them twice a day and letting them be bare rooted and dry out the rest of the time for now - I have a feeling/I hope it will help ward off bacterial growth.

Also, maybe this question is silly, but are they easy to propigate? Can I take a cutting or something to grow a baby in case they don't make it? I have a feeling they're not...

I'll address the issue of potting first then mounting later. It's not a problem if your plant is healthy by the time you decide to mount them. I don't think humidity would be that big of an issue because you're having to water so much anyways. My humidity here is not all that high, it's kinda moderate at 60% - 70%.

Although in my honest opinion, if your orchids are rescue plants, all the better to try out mounting them. It's not like they're rare. Most NOID hybrids are found everywhere and are literally somehow mass produced in countries like Taiwan, Singapore, or Malyasia. I used to work for an orchid nursery that got a 16 wheeler sized trailer full of boxes with Phals and Catts every month, sometimes there'd be two trailers full.

I recommend putting a thin layer of moss underneath the roots of the Phal and working a few strands over certain parts of the roots (just like how it'd be if a light and small patch of moss were to naturally grow onto the roots) if you decide to mount it. Makes it easier to keep moisture around the roots going, as in nature the reason why they can survive without the moss is because the trees are growing near water.

Secondly, propagating orchids is not as easy as making any old cutting and putting it in a pot. This is especially so with Phalaenopsis. The cloning process is complex and can be painstaking work for a hobbyist. I can tell you that cloning through root tips, leaf tips and meristems are all possible for Phalaenopsis, but again it's difficult and you've gotta go through a lot of research and trial and error. It's much easier to pollinate the flowers and produce seed, then send the seed to a lab until you're well equipped to sow your own seeds (again lots of research and trial and error).

To see some videos on how to pollinate an orchid, I posted a couple videos in an old thread here. You can also find them on YouTube.

Lastly, if you're constantly spraying chemicals into the air, then I'd be concerned about your orchid's health. But if it's some pine cleaner that won't touch the orchids, and it's not so strong that you can smell the pine cleaner from three rooms down the hall, then you're fine. Especially if you're not doing it everyday. Although if you feel it's a risk, it's better to err on the side of caution.

[trdyl]

Here is another thought, since you have two. You could try one on a mount and the other in a pot and see which grows best for you.

[RosieC]

I think Ted has a good idea, may be an interesting experiment!

[redperphexion]

I was thinking the same! I'm not sure how the one plant is going to do, though. There both ok looking, but one's got better roots and had a leaf chopped off, and then the other has few roots (although longer), healthier leaves, and is in bloom.

But yes, I think I will end up mounting one to see how I like it and whether I can care for it properly.

So I've bought some cheap orchid mix (possibly shooting myself in the foot) to test out how they survive potted. I'm concerned though because when they were barerooted, I could snip off any roots that started looking less healthy or that were clearly not going to make it. Now they're hidden... I'm not sure if it's a good idea to pull them out every so often and look. I have a feeling that would just stress them out.

I'm so excited! I'm already looking into my next plant purchase... I'd like to have a healthy plant to start with so I don't get too frustrated with these rescues.

Seems this is a catching hobby, I can feel it already!!!

[RosieC]

I have one which had lost most roots, and I kept pulling it out to see how they were doing and it's still recovering well. Don't know if it would have recovered quicker it I hadn't kept pulling it out though

I've had three with far worse roots than yours which are recoving well so I think yours should do fine. Yes mine lost leaves, and kept loosing them for a while, but once the number or roots was enough to sustain the number of leaves it stopped dropping them and started growing both new roots and new leaves. The worst one put out very thin pathetic new leaves to begin with, but it's latest leaf is looking really healthy

[redperphexion]

So glad to hear it! There's hope still!

My boyfriend's mum said she'd look for some freshwater driftwood at the cottage for me this weekend! Exciting!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Whenever I deal with orchid roots, I always wet them thoroughly beforehand, they become a bit more pliable when wet. It'll limit the amount of roots you snap.

[redperphexion]

Really? Good to know cause with my other plants, I find the opposite. I figured it happens because when roots are full of water they're more turgid. I must experiment and find out!