Repotting with very high up roots

[wintergirl]

Sure they are the same thing but I think we were talking "high" up on the plant air roots. If they are like that, I don't force them into the pot when I repot. I just leave them in the air.

[ALToronto]

Originally Posted by bil

Please correct me if I am wrong, but I see all pahl roots as identical. Those 'air ' ones are simply ones that have emerged above the medium.

Not correct. Each root adapts to the environment it's in as it grows. So an aerial root that is potted in media will quickly rot due to excessive wetness and lack of oxygen. You can place aerial roots in a pot, but keep them uncovered. This should be done only for aesthetic reasons or to keep the plant stable.

[wintergirl]

Originally Posted by ALToronto

Not correct. Each root adapts to the environment it's in as it grows. So an aerial root that is potted in media will quickly rot due to excessive wetness and lack of oxygen. You can place aerial roots in a pot, but keep them uncovered. This should be done only for aesthetic reasons or to keep the plant stable.

Not sure I agree on all that because you can take a vanda whose roots have all been air roots,( exposed and watered with no media) and pot those roots in large bark and clay pot and they will do just fine and not rot. (Or take any mounted plant and place those roots in a media seems similar to me.)

[mimigirl]

Bought this Dtps. Liu's Berry 'Chin Yo' this weekend. Its a mini in a 2" pot. How can I get all of these roots in a pot that is not gigantic for a mini?

[wintergirl]

Wow, you sure got the roots! I probably would trim them some and roll them around into a clay pot with chunky bark. But then again those roots are really cool, I might just try to mist and keep them.

Maybe someone else will chime in on this one.

[Cym Ladye]

Healthy air roots will absolutely adapt and will not rot when put in a pot in an appropriate mix. If they do rot, it means the mix was too dense for the genus and it was kept too wet with poor drainage.

[Fairorchids]

A. To minimize breakage of the aerial roots, soak the plant (roots) in water for 5-10 min before repotting.

B. As long as you do not crush & break the aerial roots (leading to infections & possible rotting), these roots will NOT suffer from being covered with medium. It is the same root, and it readily adapts to being in medium. I have done this with hundreds of plants, both Vandaceous and Cattleya group.

[bil]

Originally Posted by ALToronto

Not correct. Each root adapts to the environment it's in as it grows. So an aerial root that is potted in media will quickly rot due to excessive wetness and lack of oxygen. You can place aerial roots in a pot, but keep them uncovered. This should be done only for aesthetic reasons or to keep the plant stable.

Meh, any root will die if it gets inadequate oxygen. I pot phals in 2" bark only. I don't see that being a problem for 'ariel' roots, but I see a wet anoxic medium as deadly for all roots.

[Fairorchids]

Originally Posted by bil

Meh, any root will die if it gets inadequate oxygen. I pot phals in 2" bark only. I don't see that being a problem for 'ariel' roots, but I see a wet anoxic medium as deadly for all roots.

'Wet Anoxic Medium' are the key words here. As long as the medium is reasonably aerated, the roots readily adapt. I use a spaghnum/bark mix for all my Vandaceous plants (200+), packed firmly with fingertips, but not tamped down like they did in the old days.

[Optimist]

They are all air roots if you believe in epiphytes.