Newbie needs advise on repotting

[labyrinth1959]

It seems that I might be hooked on orchids. I bought another orchid from a mass merchandiser because of its color. This orchid had been dropped on the floor and I suspect that the roots and potting medium have been substantially disturbed. I have several questions for the board about this orchid. I have posted pictures to aid the discussion.

Q1: It seems like the roots are substantially out of the potting medium. Should I repot the orchid in an attempt to bury the roots?

Q2: If so, should I put the orchid in a larger pot? It seems like the roots hardly fit in the current pot. The current pot is 4.5" top and 4.0" bottom.

Q3: The orchid is very top heavy in this pot. What method would you suggest to stabilize it?

Q4: This orchid is listed as Phalaenopsis, the same as my other orchid, but the leaves look quite different. Is it common for this variety to have these differences?

[Cym Ladye]

Yes, you have a phal. and yes it needs re-potting into a pot that will accommodate all the firm roots but not too roomy. Check the "Potting/Re-potting" section of the OB for more info on Phal culture and return with other questions if you need to.

I hope this helps,

Cym Ladye

[PaphMadMan]

Cym Ladye's advice is spot on. I would just add that while it does need a larger pot you should move up in size just enough to easily accomodate the roots. Too big a pot becomes a problem by staying wet inside too long. The increase in pot size is probably all it needs to be more stable too.

Welcome to the board, and to your new orchid obssession. We're hear to enable you.

[tucker85]

I agree with the previous posts. I don't know what your other orchid looks like but this one is definately a phalaenopsis.

I agree that the plant should be repotted. As stated in the previous post, use the smallest pot that the roots will comfortably fit it. That really increases your chances for success.

Aerial roots (roots not in the medium) are perfectly fine. When you repot you can try to have most of the roots in the potting medium but you don't need to have every root in the potting medium. In nature the plant would be attached to the side of a tree and most of the roots would be out in the air.

There's not much you can do about the plant being top heavy. Hopefully a slightly large pot will help. Good luck.

[Wynn Dee13]

Welcome! When you repot, you can bury the roots growing in the air but if some won't go in the pot it is ok to leave them out. Sometimes the roots grow too high on the plant or they grow upward so if you tried to bury them in the pot they would break or won't fit. So just leave those ones be. It looks like you do have one growing upwards so if you tried to bend it down it would break it. Just mist the air roots and water them too when you water the plant.

Like the others said, pick a pot that just fits the healthy root ball. Orchids do not like to be over potted. It will cause root rot because the meadium won't dry out fast enough. You might even be able to reuse the pot it is in if you need to cut off any dead roots. Cut any squishy or hollow roots off because they are dead.

Orchids can get top heavy. I usually set the pot into a bigger clay pot to stabilize it. I like the clay pot to be a little bit bigger so there is a space in between the two pots for air flow.

It sounds like you have Phalaenopsis hybrids. Do they have a tag in the pot that says the plants hybrid name? If they don't you have Phalaenopsis NoIDs. It means they have no ID and you dont know the plants parentage. To answer your question, Phal leaves can look different in size, shape, and color. It just depends what their parentage is.

When you repot buy a bark mix and soak it for at least 24 hours. New bark won't hold water like old bark does so you will most likely find that you will need to water more but it all depends on your growing conditions. If you have a hard time finding orchid supplies where you live, Lowes and Home Depot sell a bark mix called Better-Gro Special Orchid Mix. My Home Depot doesn't always carry it but I always find it at Lowes. I just bought a bag for $6. It contains fir bark, charcoal, and perlite/sponge rock. Do not use Miricle Grow Orchid mix! It is way too soil like containing mostly peat and it will suffocate the roots. I prefer clear plastic pots so I can see the root system and Phals photosynthesize through their roots if they are exposed to light.

Good luck and if you have anymore questions just ask! There is a great thread about Phals bought at grocery stores and big box stores and Phals in general called The Phal Abuse Ends Here. It is long but has a lot of great information. I recommend reading it. Here is the link. http://www.orchidboard.com/community...ends-here.html
Here is a link that explains why a NoID is a NoID just in case you want more info. http://www.orchidboard.com/community...noid-noid.html

[labyrinth1959]

Thanks all for your replies. They are much appreciated.

On a different note, I have looked extensively locally for the clear orchid pots and have not found them even at a very large local greenhouse/merchandiser. I guess I will have to order them on line.

[james mickelso]

Is the one root I see in the pictures the only root actually covered in potting mix? If that is so then you can cut it off (the audience gasps and starts throwing tomatoes and invectives), cut off the bottom two leaves, dust the cuts with cinnamon powder ,and repot right into the pot it is in now. There are lots of roots there to keep it going quite well when potted in new mix. It won't skip a beat. I only see one long gangly root in the mix right now and with that one root gone, the entire thing can be repotted in the same pot. To keep it from falling over Wynn Dee is right. Just get a slightly larger pot to put the whole planting into.

[Wynn Dee13]

James- I believe all three pics are the same plant just different angles. If I'm right, the plant has quite a bit of roots that are in the meadium in the one pic. But yes if a Phal only has healthy air roots you can cut the bottom off and plant it. I do know not everyone agrees with that technique but it works for some.

[james mickelso]

Hi Wynn Dee, let me show you what I did with a phal that had a ungoshly amount of roots with a few air roots but the top was very sparse so I cut off a lot of the roots and here is what I ended up with. Of course a rescue.

[labyrinth1959]

Wynn Dee is correct, all three pictures are of the same plant, just different angles/sides.