What is the best planting medium / mix for Orchids?

[WhiteRabbit]

Originally Posted by johnteller8

Thanks all-

I appreciate all the advice.
While I am researching the factors, what do you think about co co coir based mixes? Are there pros and cons when using coir ( made from coconut husks ) for growing orchids? Supposedley stays ph nuetral....
what are your thoughts?

I don't use coir (did once receive a plant potted in it), but do use coconut husk chips (chc), and now a product that is chips and fiber, for many orchids (plants that like to remain a bit moist, and others in small pots). I think just coir retains quite a bit of moisture - but again, I have very limited experience with it - which isn't necessarily bad, but needs to be taken into consideration.

[gnathaniel]

Grass pinks (Calopogon tuberosus) are bog plants that need very different potting medium than epiphytes. A typical mix is 1:1 quartz sand to peat or sphagnum moss, kept constantly moist. I suspect they'd grow fine in pretty much anything fairly acidic, moisture retentive, sharply draining, and low in nutrients, but I could be wrong. Fine coir by itself retains a lot of moisture, similar to sphagnum peat; if you use it for your grass pink I suggest blending with sand/perlite for drainage and sphagnum moss for acidity.

Calopogons have an annual cycle and as far as I know need winter vernalization to break dormancy in the spring. Depending on your climate, you might be able to achieve this by leaving the pot outside through the winter. Some people also unpot dormant plants and refrigerate for the winter months.

Hope this helps, I love grass pinks!

[Cactuseed]

My 2 C's & i realize off topic:

Repotme sells quality yet very pricey mixes. If you want to save some money here's my DIY repotme mix :

1 - fir bark. get it from a pet store that sells it for reptiles. 4 bucks for a gallon bag
2 - garden store (hd, lowes) get some perlite. 3. while your there get some lava rock.

wash the lava rock. mix at 4 parts fir bark to 1 part perlite, 1 part lava. put in a bucket and pour boiling water into it to kill bug larvae and stuff.
Plus depending on the orchid I add some moss.

Also i do not recommend 'miracle gro' orchid mix. I had some given to me and it is basically potting soil. unbelievable