S/H benefits?

[Merlyn]

We have one lady here with a lean-to g/h and her whole collection, aside from mounteds, is in s/h. She doesn't have Phals, though.

[Bud]

Ray is the right person to ask about S/H...I learned so much from his research and experience. He told me never to let the Mokara roots touch water or cold water...so I have all my S/H outside the window this summer and I will bring it indoors this winter with electric heaters...

[Kelo]

I have to shipments coming in this month; catts n paphs so some of them are going the s/h route.

[zxyqu]

Kelo, a big warning to you putting them in S/H if not in very active new growth. Without new growth, older roots will just rot off and you'll really set the plant back (and that's assuming it survives the onslaught of root loss). Please, please, take this to heart and trust me, and likely others, who decided any time is good. Ray warned me, and I lost a couple of plants before I finally listened. Just trying to save you some $$$

[Eyebabe]

Very true!

My assumption is that ALL the current roots left for the repot will rot and die; therefore the plant MUST grow NEW roots into the s/h media to survive and it is a RACE for the plant to do so. Leave too many roots and you have a big rotten mess-ball very shortly

The first thing I can recommend is a nice trim small root system that is very clean from old media when you transfer to the s/h. Make sure you have soaked the s/h in some KLN solution to promote new roots.
If you have some new root buds that are less than an inch long they should adapt and grow in as new roots.
Having small new root buds is the optimal time to pot into s/h and in essence gives your plant the "head start" it needs.

After a good bit of roots have grown (usually after about 6 months) I personally gently manipulate and even un-pot the plant cutting as many brown rotted roots off as I can manage without disturbing the new root system too much.

[Bud]

I freaked when I had dried roots and a couple of leaves yellowed and died on my first few weeks on H/S; I just had patince and left it alone.
I was releived when the existing new roots came out fast from the plant and started to move way down towards the water level...and then I noticed a new leaf coming out. (see Mokara Gold pics)

[Kelo]

OK, thanks guys for the info. It might be prudent to leave it until they are showing active growth then. Why would it be the case that existing roots might rot?

[Bud]

because the old roots are used to a different media that retains moisture from its surface only. The hydroton contains moisture inside and it is too much for the old roots to handle.

[camille1585]

Because when roots grow, the new tissue produced tailors itself to its environment. Basically a root growing in bark and one in S/H are completely different. So if you put roots that are used to an airy medium they are not adapted to it and eventually die. If you let new roots grow into the medium, then they tailor themselves to it and are perfectly happy/healthy in such a wet environment.

[Kelo]

Ah! right, OK, thanks again, Bud! You might get to come to Tahiti yet! LMAO