New purchases/Aerangis & D.Pulcrerrima Var Champorensis Alba

[Tamilynn]

I've been wanting to experiment with different orchids, but sometimes it's hard to find the all the info, or the exact info I'm looking for. I have searched here and read all the threads about both of these orchids...thank you for all your knowledge. This is the most informative site.
I just ordered these and am wondering when to repot and if they're in the right media.
The Aerangis citrate x fastuosa came in moss with only bottom aeration. Is starting to bloom, so I don't want to change anything yet, but would probably repot in looser medium after bloom?
The D.Pucherrima var Champorensis Alba is in a tall pot with good medium. I took a pic of the roots, but don't like that it's in a green pot and I can't see the roots underneath.It's had previous blooms and I don't see spikes. When to repot?
Any help is very much appreciated

[camille1585]

That compacted sphag can be tricky to deal with if you don't have experience watering that sort of thing. I personally have trouble with compact sphag, and always report immediately, buds or not. If you are confident that you can water correctly, imo it's fine to wait to repot.

As to the Doritis, if you are more comfortable repotting it, go ahead and do it now. Many people repot all new orchids as soon as they get them.

Just a comment on the names. It should be Aerangis citrata,and the Doritis should be Doritis pulcherrima var. champorensis alba. it may seem like minor nitpicky issues, but the use of capital letters has an important function in nomenclature. Capital first letter on the second word is used to indicate a man-made hybrid, and lowercase indicates a species. The var bit informs you that champorensis is a naturally occuring variety of D. pulcherrima. Though I do have a doubt on whether it's alba or 'alba'. It's not really a cultivar, but naturally occuring variation.

[Tamilynn]

Auto correct on my computer messed up the citrata and turned it into citrate..lol. Thanks for explaining the importance of capitalization. I'll be more careful.
Compacted sphag is the Aerangis? Sorry but am a real beginner. From what I'm reading, it should be repotted in chunky medium. I don't want to mount it. Also everywhere I read says wait until the bloom is done? Complicated hobby I'm taking on, but so addicting!

[camille1585]

The Aerangis is in sphagnum moss (sphag for short, as is frequently written), and usually plants in sphag in those single hole soft pots have the sphag compacted pretty hard. That way of growing actually works quite well in a professional grower greenhouse setup. In home situations however, it doesn't dry out as well and people frequently overwater. As you say you are a beginner, I would suggest that you either repot it to your medium of choice, or, to avoid stressing it with a bigger change of medium, remove the sphag and repot it with the same sphag, but much more loosely.

Yes, there is a risk that the plant may not appreciate it much and drop some of the buds. The alternative, if you think you may not be able to assess the watering frequency and amount correctly as it is potted now, is that you rot the roots and the plant dies.

The general "rule" is to wait until after blooming, and for some orchids, better wait for active growth to repot. But there are always exceptions. For instance:
*You have doubts on the quality of the roots of newly purchased plants and repotting allows you to see what shape the roots are in.
*The newly purchased plant is in a medium which you know doesn't work well in your conditions or with your watering habits.
*The existing medium is badly degraded.

In general, when in doubt, repot. Yes, a budding/blooming plant may be a bit stressed by the process and abort the buds/blooms (or you accidently snap the spike- which sadly can happen quite easily!), but with good care it will bloom again. The the alternative is enjoying the blooms and by the time you repot the roots have rotted and you lose the plant.

[estación seca]

This kind of sphagnum in a pot needs a different watering technique than bark. Plants in sphagnum should be kept separate from plants in bark so they aren't accidentally watered too soon.

Don't soak the sphagnum when you water. Just put a small amount of water on top. It will distribute itself through the sphagnum mass by capillary action. The moss ideally stays somewhat moist, never wet and never crisp.

While you are learning, it's better to put a little less on, and water a day earlier next time, rather than risk getting the moss too wet.

Envision somebody with a water wand on a hose, watering a whole bench of plants potted like this, tucked cheek by jowl on a bench. The person would run the wand rapidly over the bench, and each plant would be in the stream for less than a second.

The goal is to have barely moist moss providing constant water to the roots, but plenty of air, as well. After a good soaking, sphagnum can take many days for the water to evaporate and the air spaces re-open. This is why the sphagnum should not be soaked.

For very thirsty orchids growing strongly, it may be appropriate to soak the sphagnum. That is not the case for most.

[Leafmite]

If you can find a basket pot, I would gently slide out the entire contents of the Aerangis pot and put it, as is, in a basket pot. This will allow air to get to the roots without disturbing them. Angraecoids tend to prefer both a decent amount of air exchange and not to have their roots disturbed.

I kill everything in bark but moss works very well for me when paired with basket pots. It is important to buy good quality moss, though.