Need some advice, Orchids are dying!

[Dollythehun]

Then that's probably not the method to use. Try the Bag and spagh method. Barely damp spaghnum, lay plant on top and mostly seal bag.

In get it but, just as I can't save every person, you can't save every plant...pick your battles.

[Possum-Pie]

Originally Posted by Dollythehun

Then that's probably not the method to use. Try the Bag and spagh method. Barely damp spaghnum, lay plant on top and mostly seal bag.

In get it but, just as I can't save every person, you can't save every plant...pick your battles.

Thanks, I will try that. BTW I am a registered nurse, and learned a long time ago that I can't save every person either-but I don't give up on them...Guess it spills over to plants also.

[Dollythehun]

I'm in the helping profession also. I've learned tight boundaries.

[Mountaineer370]

No one else has mentioned it yet, but in the two pics you posted of your pots, I believe only the white one in the center is what is typically called an orchid pot. It has "holes" all around the sides of the pot which allow for lots of ventilation. The two on either side appear to be solid glazed ceramic pots. They probably have a single drainage hole at the bottom that allows water to escape into the attached saucer. Others will correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe that's enough ventilation for your average orchid. Many people successfully use unglazed clay pots with only one drainage hole in the bottom, but the unglazed clay is actually a very porous material. Your glazed ceramic pots are almost airtight in comparison.

The pots are beautiful, BTW, and I'd love to plant orchids in something so nice, but all of mine are in plastic pots with many drainage holes in the bottoms and some with additional slits in the sides. They all dry out pretty quickly. OTOH, I have an African violet that is in a glazed ceramic pot, I give it a tiny bit of water, and it stays wet for a very long time. My other two AVs are in unglazed clay, and I water them three times as often.

Just something to think about.

[aliceinwl]

When I decided to try to keep our Phals alive long term, I found Repotting Phalaenopsis (Moth) & Other Monopodial Orchids very helpful. I followed their mix recipe with good results.

I also used the skewer method linked at the top of this forum to gauge moisture in the pot.

I potted all of mine in clear plastic slotted orchid pots like: Slotted Orchid Pots, because I wanted to see the roots too. I did try a bagged orchid mix, initially, on one of mine, but I was able to see the roots starting to die, which is when I found the Missouri recipe and mixed up some from scratch.

I have a lot of solid ceramic pots like yours and I put the plastic slotted pots inside them To water, I usually pull out the plastic pot, put it in a water tight container, fill it with water, soak for 5 minutes or so, let all the water drain out, and replace it in the ceramic pot. Especially with a new mix, I've found soaking works better than just letting the water run through.

[Possum-Pie]

I want to thank all of you helpful folks for the great suggestions. I am realizing that the most probable reason for the demise of my beloved orchids was a combination of shock from transplanting from moss directly to bark, and the low quality of media. The bark contains too much small soil-like components. If I would have known to rinse/sieve first, I probably wouldn't have killed them. Diagnosis: suffocation. I'm going to learn from my mistakes, and hunt around for some more Orchids to start again. I had a beautiful yellow and hot orange one that I will miss the most, I'm going to try to find one like that. BTW, not to get off-topic, but Longwood Gardens near Philly is doing their Orchid Extravaganza until the end of March. It is thousands of orchids and worth the trip. Picture

[Laticauda]

Check out Trader Joe's as well
Lots of beautiful Phals and easy care intergenerics. I even found a Dendrobium nobile once. (If i already suggested this to you, i apologize)

[WaterWitchin]

Late to the convo as usual. For what it's worth, for orchids I use a potting medium with, I buy Orchiata right off Amazon. I usually buy several different sizes in a large quantity, so with free shipping it's great. I've purchased some really nice pots off repotme.com (clear ones). Phals also do well in S/H, if you do it the right way. Or mounted, but that's kind of time-consuming and doesn't work well without the right setup and conditions.

Also, I do a LOT of growing in clear pots, then just stick them down inside those pretty pots you have. If the pot is too tall, just stick a few rocks in there to bring up height.

The thing that stinks about successfully growing in a beautiful ceramic pot, especially the one with the holes, is that sooner or later you'll need to repot. You'll either get a lot of damage getting it out of the pot, or resort to a hammer to break the pot. Which is okay if you just want to go buy another pretty pot.

PS I understand exactly what you mean about transferring your profession over to your hobby or passion. Unfortunately for the two plants I saw, those are past the point of salvation. No amount of life support is ever gonna improve their QoL. No offense.

PPS I've been to that at Longwood. It's truly amazing.

[Possum-Pie]

Originally Posted by WaterWitchin

The thing that stinks about successfully growing in a beautiful ceramic pot, especially the one with the holes, is that sooner or later you'll need to repot. You'll either get a lot of damage getting it out of the pot, or resort to a hammer to break the pot. Which is okay if you just want to go buy another pretty pot.



PPS I've been to that at Longwood. It's truly amazing.

I think I will plant in clear plastic pots, dropped down into the ceramic ones. I have a nice large Phalaenopis that is planted that way. A tug on the crown and the whole thing comes out of the decorative pot. Just planting in the Ceramic directly didn't allow me to see the tell-tale signs of root rot until it was too late.

[Orchid Whisperer]

I grow most of my Phals in unglazed terracotta pots. A few have extra holes in the sides, many don't. Oh, and use the smallest pot that will fit the roots.

Also, my potting medium is not expensive. I use Better Gro orchid bark ($5 per 8 quart bag, Lowe's and similar stores), medium is layered in the pot with coarse drainage material in the bottom third of the pot (chunks of styrofoam broken up a little larger than the bark works well), middle third of pot 50% bark, 50 % styrofoam, top third all bark, or bark with chunky charcoal. You can substitute gravel for the styrofoam, similar size, if you prefer a heavier pot (for top heavy plants, I do).


I have zero problems keeping healthy roots. It is all about drainage and water management. I have looked at the Miracle Grow stuff before, not the greatest but sift out the dust with a colander, you could probably use it.