Can I repot 2 months after another repotting?

[inuank]

Hello everybody!

I'm new to the orchid world and I just became a member.

I have a phalaenopsis that was neglected a lot - and suffered a lot- but is still surviving and I would like to ask some things.

Some 4 months ago my husband thought to replant the orchid we got from his mom as a present in ground and thought it's a good idea to give it lots of water. So I guess it's obvious what happened next - root rot. 2 months later I figured out what happened - I didn't know about it - and I took it out, washed away all the ground, cut away the rotted roots and bought in a cheap shop some orchid potting mix consisting of coconut bark. I planted this in a black container ( with some ventilation on the bottom). The orchid is getting better, growing new leaves and roots but I'm thinking of repotting it again in bark and moss , in a transparent pot with more ventilation holes, not only on the bottom. It's only been around 2-3 months since then, is that a good idea or do I better leave it be ? I find that the coconut dries on top very fast but keeps a lot of moisture inside the pot and I'm afraid this is too wet for the orchid. Also, most of the surviving roots are above the potting mix, so if I give water when the top is dry - and the roots are dry and silvery- then the bottom of the pot practically is always wet..or if I wait till the coconut is dry then the roots stay without water fro too long.

[orchidsarefun]

you can repot it, no problem. I think a large to medium bark/sphagnum moss mix is better anyway. Distribute the moss evenly throughout the pot. Once a week watering so that the water flows out the bottom will be sufficient.
Note that some phals do produce a lot of aerial roots - so yours doing the same is normal and you shouldn't try and stuff the roots into the pot.

[inuank]

Originally Posted by orchidsarefun

you can repot it, no problem. I think a large to medium bark/sphagnum moss mix is better anyway. Distribute the moss evenly throughout the pot. Once a week watering so that the water flows out the bottom will be sufficient.
Note that some phals do produce a lot of aerial roots - so yours doing the same is normal and you shouldn't try and stuff the roots into the pot.

Thanks for answering ! I will repot it then. This one unfortunately doesn't have any roots in the coconut, only the aerial ones...I'm hoping they will start growing soon.

[Orchid Whisperer]

You can re-pot it if you prefer to.

Regarding the type of medium, mixing moss with bark may be OK if your plant will be able to dry out frequently - almost dry, but not quite, before you water again.

A Phalaenopsis growing in my region of the United States would prefer bark only, because we have high summer humidity outdoors, and it can also rain frequently. It is difficult to keep the plant from being too wet sometimes.

Whatever medium you choose, your water should be managed so that it nearly dries out (but not quite dry) before you water again.

By the way, welcome to Orchid Board!

[NYCorchidman]

You can repot orchids any time, but frequent disturb isn't the best thing for root establishment.

If it is doing well in the current mix, I don't see why you want to repot again.

I put Styrofoam peanuts or pebbles at the bottom of pots to help drain well.

[inuank]

Ok, seeing all the responses, I realise I watered it too often till now ( around 2 times a week) because although the first layer of 2.5 cm was dry, the rest of the mix was usually quite soggy. Thanks to everybody for the answers!

[LadySoren]

I got my first orchid almost a year ago and that poor thing has been ice-cubed, had a ton of good roots chopped off, repotted like 6 times.
I am happy to say that despite my horrible newbie mistakes, it now has a spike with buds. let's just hope it doesn't bud blast.