Repot time?

[SaraJean]

This is my oncidium Sharry baby that I have had for only a few weeks and she seems to be crawling out if her pot! This is my first oncidium and I am a bit intimidated by all of those tiny roots- the size, the color, the feel of them, should they be crawing out of the pot, ect.. Basically, I have no idea what healthy oncidium roots should look like. It is in a bark mixture with no moss in it, which I hope will help when it comes time to clean out all of the old media and save me from damaging too many roots.

So! Question time: Should I repot this little plant now? What is a good time to repot it? And as much as I love chemistry and experimenting with things; I am toying around with the idea of trying s/h. Could that work for an oncidium? I keep reading conflicting reports on keeping an oncidiums in s/h, and I don't want to pot it something it will for sure hate but I am not afraid of killing it and starting over again. Gotta lose some to win some!

[silken]

Your plant looks like it could use a bit larger pot to me. I only re-pot when new root growth has started, which many of my Oncidiums are doing now. And when I buy something new where I can't tell what the condition of the root ball is or do not like the media. Your plant looks very healthy and has very good roots. The new ones will be white with green tips. And these have much skinnier roots than Phals and Catts do, for comparison. You could soak it before trying to remove old media. I prefer to leave a few pieces rather than mangle the roots to get every last piece.

I don't do S/H but the correct time to move a plant to it is when new roots are just started so that they can adapt to the new conditions. From what I read on here, you will likely lose most of the old roots as they can not adapt to such a change. But there are people who grow a lot of S/H here who can give you a better idea about that.

I am finding my Oncidiums like a fair bit of moisture so I do keep mine pretty well watered. A friend of mine had hers on a shelf in her shade house last summer where they were rather neglected and ended up sitting in pots of accumulated water (sort of S/H but not intentionally) and she couldn't believe how healthy and happy they were and the spikes were many come fall. So I have ramped up my watering after hearing this.

Good luck with the S/H if you go that route.

[bil]

Mine go into pots 10 or 12 inches in diam and about 3-4 inches deep. I pot them in fine bark, they get two wet days a week in summer when they are watered until the water runs out the base, and the rest are dry days when the get a wash down with the spray and a little water is allowed to run into the media.

[SaraJean]

Originally Posted by bil

Mine go into pots 10 or 12 inches in diam and about 3-4 inches deep. I pot them in fine bark, they get two wet days a week in summer when they are watered until the water runs out the base, and the rest are dry days when the get a wash down with the spray and a little water is allowed to run into the media.

Right now the plant is in a 4" pot, what size would you recommend going up to? I know some of my other non-orchid plants freak out if they get potted up to large, does it work the same way with oncidiums? And what do you mean by "wash down"? Do you just spray off the plant leaves every day with a little spray bottle of water?

[RandomGemini]

I'd go up to a five inch pot. When you tease those roots loose, of the old medium, they'll take up the space.

I don't mist my oncidiums. Their leaves are thin. Any standing water left on them invites fungal infections.

[lotis146]

I agree that your plant looks really healthy. Your roots are a good color and appear firm. As you get rid of the old media you'll see some roots that have died naturally, they'll be more brown/brownish-gray and mushy or papery, get rid of those. For the future you'll know then what to look out for in terms of bad Oncidium roots.

I also agree to go up to a 5 or even 6 inch pot. I don't have any s/h experience so I can't help you there but I second silken in saying Oncids are thirsty plants. And thanks Silken for sharing that bit about your friend's experience, that's good to know.

Best of luck! Probably would help to soak the plant first to loosen up those roots.

[bil]

Originally Posted by SaraJean

Right now the plant is in a 4" pot, what size would you recommend going up to? I know some of my other non-orchid plants freak out if they get potted up to large, does it work the same way with oncidiums? And what do you mean by "wash down"? Do you just spray off the plant leaves every day with a little spray bottle of water?

As Random gemini said, I don't mist my oncidiums, tho to keep the temps down I have to fog, and anything that can't tolerate that is compost, I'm afraid.

My oncids ae in pots 10 inches in diameter.

I water with an ultra low fertiliser every day by spray, the plants get washed down most days in the summer, a lot less in winter.

[Tom-Tom]

So I'm new to the orchid world but what is "s/h"?

[SFLguy]

Originally Posted by Tom-Tom

So I'm new to the orchid world but what is "s/h"?

I am too so I might be completely wrong buy I think it means semi hydroponically

[Cntry]

SFLguy your are correct it means semi hydroponic. There is a section here that tells you all about it also. Members ask questions all about semi hydroponic techniques there. If you click on home on the menu on the left of your page a new page will open up then go down you will find it. I think its the third one down. It should say beginning discussion, then advanced discussion , then semi hydroponics.