Rec'd Phalaenopsis planted in moss

[lkatwest]

Opps. I wrote the message out but not sure where it went. Anyways I received a phal orchid as a gift 2 weeks ago. Its been blooming since at least mid-April. It's planted in moss. I can see through the pot that at least some of the roots are rotten, and the moss is really wet right down to the bottom. It has a sort of mildewy smell. I'm wondering if I should plant it into a bark mixture, or wait until its finished blooming? I'd like to enjoy the blooms as my 2 other orchids have never rebloomed, however I also want the plant to be healthy in the long term. So should I plant it into bark, and if so, how should I do it without disrupting it too much?

[Optimist]

My take on this (if it matters) is if you are getting a signal that there is mildew in the pot, then the answer is obvious: repot it. I am not there to smell it so I totally trust what you are saying. A bit of moisture and a closed container like the "plastic pot of death" will cause a great need to quickly repot. To remove the PPOD (plastic pot of death) cut gently with a scissors making sure not to touch or damage the roots. Then with tweezers or fingers, gently pull the moss out from between roots.

What I would do is remove it from said PPOD right away (It won't die if it just sits there in Spaghum moss, just keep it a bit moist), find a nice airy /holy pot even if you must drill many holes yourself, or alternatively find some lecca and do it up Semi Hydroponic style (which is the only way I have been able to grow phals). An easy to find style of lecca is usually found at pet stores for terrariums (poison dart frogs). Another thing you can use is landscaping lava rocks or perlite from a gardening center. A nice tall deli-container with holes in the sides and some orchid grow big bark potting mix can be used for SH too. Your orchid in the PPOD is used to plenty of moisture so don't be afraid to water, just make sure the water drains quickly (a tub, sink or other drainage catcher will be under it).

[lkatwest]

Okay I've taken the orchid out of the moss. There was sooo much moss balled into the pot and the root system was completely rotten. I saved maybe 10% of the roots, basically just the few roots that were on the top out of the moss. The center of the root structure is still completely wet. My question is, do I immediately re-pot it into the bark mixture, which I've been soaking to increase moisture retention, or should I leave it to dry out?

[estación seca]

There is a great thread here on learning to take care of Phals. In the left yellow menu click on Forums then Beginners. Near the top look at the sticky thread The Phal abuse stops here.