Best potting medium for paphiopedilums?

[paphlovian]

Hi,

I brought home three paph.'s today on 'sale' that are finished blooming and am wondering what the BEST medium is for potting this type of orchid. I have already repotted two of them in an orchid mix medium (with bark, charcoal, & perlite) and am not certain this was the best medium for paphs. In reading about these, it sounds like they might need additional material to hold moisture such as sphagnum moss. I need suggestions from those who have more experience than I do on what would be best to do. I would be interested in repotting them again with additional medium and could do so within the next two days, but don't know if this will cause additional damage, or if getting it into better medium will pay-off in the long-run. Also, it sounds like sphagnum moss might have anti-fungal properties: sounds like it might be helpful as my potted plants on my hot and humid patio that is free of direct sunlight appear to be very prone to molds/fungus this summer.
Thanks for all your feedback!

[slipperfreak]

Yes Paphs like a bark medium (fine grade usually unless you have a larger plant) but adding some sphag or peat is desirable, as well as some lime (no lime for P. delenatii). However, these are not plants you want to grow in pure sphag or peat; they will rot. For those that you have already potted, just leave them; they'll do fine as long as the grade is not too coarse. Use a small pot that the roots fit snuggly into and water enough to keep evenly moist, but not wet. Allow the pot to dry halfway before watering again. Another good medium is coconut husk, which I have limited experience with.

[paphlovian]

Thank you for your response! In regards to the grade of barks, I have only found limited sources for bark in my local stores (such as Home Depot). I'm not sure what grade my current bark is; it is called "Special Orchid Mix" by the company "Better Gro." All of the bark sold for orchids that I have seen has been a similar coarseness. I had wondered about this before when repotting an orchid (a Dendrobium); it seemed so wobly in the pot after repotting, it seemed as though it needed a finer bark to hold it in place. It is very good to know too much sphagnum moss will cause rot, especially since I tend to overwater at times. Also, with the paphs I repotted today, portions of several roots are peeking out from the medium; is this normal? I have placed medium up to the base of the plant (don't want to put too much in to rot the base).

Orchids don't become complicated for the newcomer until the beautiful buds from the store fall off. Thanks again!

[slipperfreak]

It sounds to me like the medium you have is a generic type of medium designed for Phalaenopsis (which is usually medium grade). You may have problems with moisture retention using this considering Paphs grow in small pots (I don't expect you have any huge multiflorals?). You will definately want to add some peat or sphag, and some lime (for pH adjustment) to this if you can't find a fine grade. Try looking for fine grade at specialty orchid vendors or even at large garden centres that sell Paphs. Paph roots should not protrude over the surface of the medium; this indicates a plant in need of repotting. There are some species that produce stolons, but still roots should not be visible (and you most likely don't have any stolon-producing species as these are hard to find and expensive).

[paphlovian]

The brand that makes the medium I used also makes a "Phalaenopsis Mix," but I think it may be a very similar grade as what I have. If no finer bark is found, how should be spaghnum moss be added to the mix?- Some orchids I've seen appear to have similar material placed between the roots under the plant. Hope it works out-- maybe I should have investigated this before attempting to repot. I'm learning!

[slipperfreak]

I would mix in 1 part sphag to 3-4 parts of the mix while repotting. If you can't find a fine mix, I wouldn't worry too much, but buy clear plastic pots so you can tell visually when the plant needs water. With a coarser mix you may have to water more frequently; just remember to wait for it to dry halfway between waterings. This is very important - they say about Phrags "If in doubt, water"; with Paphs I say "If in doubt, wait a day or two before watering". Follow this basic rule, and your plant will survive, guaranteed. Of course, getting it to flower is a little more difficult . Seriously though, Paphs are really not hard to grow (for the most part). I am curious now though, what types did you buy? I can give you some more specific advice on them.

[paphlovian]

This is assuming these tags are correct (these were the "discards" in attempt to sell before sending back to the ventor), here are what the names are:

* paph. deperle var. album (primulinum 'lemon pie' x delenatil var. album)
* paph. delenatii 'semi' x paph. pine glow 'c.h. #1'
(those are the two that I repotted in the generic medium)
* paph. delenatii x paph. liemianum
(which is a larger plant in a larger pot.)

The leaves on all three are wavy.

Then, I have two other paphiopedilums:

* paph. raisin pie 'hsinying' sib (paph. supersuk 'eureka' am/aos x
which has been blooming for months and the blooms are finally coming to an end (it's the one pictured in my avatar),
and unknown one given to me by a friend. I never saw the flower, but the leaves look just like the one listed directly above but are deeper green. He said the flower is a deep purple color

Regarding the clear plastic pots: That is a great idea, though I only have several plastic pots that are too small and I've never seen them in stores. I need to either look harder or maybe order online, if I want to go that route.

Thanks for the reassurance. I would really like to have these plants bloom and live for years and I'm trying to start them out right! Thanks for the help!

[slipperfreak]

Okay... the first three are Parvi influence crosses, which are made from crossing members of subgenus Parvisepalum with other species. Easy and pretty; standard conditions for mottled leaf hybrids. That third one must be multigrowth? It will do better in the coarser grade than the others. The last one are Maudiae type crosses, which are the easiest ones to grow and bloom; same conditions as the parvi influence. These mottled leaf hybrids (all the ones you listed) like warm temps and low light. Drops in temps at night will cause them to flower; they flower spontaneously and regularly at any time of the year. I'm sure you'll have great experiences with these. Good luck and be sure to post pics!

[Phantasm]

I have been using the same mix for many years, and it's basically 4 parts of medium bark (for mature plants, fine bark for seedlings), 1 part of perlite, 1 part of charcoal and a bit of bone meal. The key is keeping the mix fresh, so don't get lazy about repotting! Otherwise, the mix breaks down and the roots rot, leading to loss of your plants.

[Ray]

I hate to be the contrarian here (actually...I don't. It can sometimes be fun!), but I have successfully grown paphs is sphagnum, coco-peat, bark, CHC, coarse perlite, blends of charcoal, CHC and coarse perlite, and of course, in LECA under semi-hydroculture.

There is no across-the-board "best" medium for any plant, and there is no "lousy" medium for any plant either, because the things that are important are a lot more than just the plant! Other things that MUST be considered include the conditions under which you grow - humidity, temperatures (day/night & winter/summer), air movement, and amount of light - and how much you like to "mess with" your plants.

Most paphs are semi-terrestrial, meaning they live on the ground, but with their roots ambling around in- and under the leaf litter on the forest floor. Because that stays moist and tends to get compact over time, the plants have adapted and grown little bristly hairs on the roots to keep the air space more open around them.

So, knowing something about the natural needs of the plant allows you to analyze how your conditions and watering habits will affect the properties of the medium, and choose appropriately. Alternately, you can modify your watering habits to compensate - when growing paphs in sphagnum, I just barely dampened the moss so it would remain barely moist and fluffy, and the plants did fine.