I think I need to repot

[Smith96]

I have a compact/mini NoID Phal. that I bought a week ago from Home Depot, and I looked at its roots today and I think it needs to be repotted. But I dont know what potting mixture I should use because I researched and I've seen that some people use sphagnum moss and some people use bark type material. could you please tell me which is better, or if you have something that works for you. And could you tell me if i should put it in a clear plastic pot then put it in a nicer pot, or just put it in a terracotta pot

[Ashley9]

DRAINAGE is a definite need. home depot carries the orchid bark mix along with the sphag moss and otheres. very cheap for the most part. clear plastic is good bc you can check outer roots... there are alot of repotting tutorials for phals... def worth a watch...potting mix is what ever is comfortable for you but mostly whats best for the chid... and how it responds... im switching to leca and s/h bc i heard it works wonders. some i plan to mount on live trees. if the roots look rotted and are squishy flat hollow feeling...repot cut all dead rotted roots away.. sterile cutting tool for that!.. you will have more comments and input soon good luck!!

[Discus]

What works best is, somewhat frustratingly, unique to you and your orchid(s)! However, most people find growing phalaenopsis at home easiest in bark based (rather than moss based) media.

There is a Phalaenopsis "megathread" that has more information than you could possibly need on keeping these guys alive - check it out. http://www.orchidboard.com/community...ends-here.html
For a quick(ish) guide to phalaenopsis, I usually send people to have a read of this. Orchids on a Balcony: How to grow Phalaenopsis - an orchid blog "meme"?

Many people pot phalaenopsis in a clear pot as this seems to help them put roots into the pot (rather than up into the air) and also lets you check on the health of the roots. They also seem to photosynthesise a bit with their roots too. Obviously, this doesn't happen in a solid pot.

You can try a hybrid approach with a clear inner pot sitting inside a pretty outer pot - just make sure no water ends up sitting in the bottom of the pretty pot, as that will rot your phal.

[james mickelso]

It's pretty easy to make a decision on what to use. You can use moss, bark based media, or synthetic. Your choice and all are just as valid as the next. The caveat here is to base it on your watering frequency and then modify the choice to that. If you like sphagnum moss then remember that you don't want it to be squished into the pot too tightly which will render the moss down in the lower middle of the pot stale and curtail adequate airflow. If you use a bark based media you can use the smaller sized bark and then you need to water less often because it will need time to dry out. You can use a larger sized media and then you can water more often without the center becoming waterlogged and stale. Ot you can go to the pet store and get gravel or expended clay pellets. I use both lava cinder for my phals as well as a bark based and also moss. Each has a different watering scheme. But if you use moss all you have to remember is to pack it around the roots loosely. You don't need clear plastic pots either. Those are nice and all but black plastic or clay also work just as well. I like plastic for phals as it stays a little more moist in plastic than in clay. So that is it in a nutshell.

[Smith96]

I think I'm going to go with a bark type substrate rather than moss, but which brand should i buy, Miracle-gro or Better-gro? Or if anybody has another brand that you can buy online.

thanks

[Jayfar]

Originally Posted by Smith96

I think I'm going to go with a bark type substrate rather than moss, but which brand should i buy, Miracle-gro or Better-gro? Or if anybody has another brand that you can buy online.

thanks

Neither of those. Look into orchiata.

Orchiata - New Zealand Orchid Bark as a Potting Mix for Orchids and Cymbidium Growing Media | Orchid Substrate from Besgrow Orchiata Specialists

I'll add that the Besgrow website has a great deal of helpful information for comparing the characteristics of their orchid media.

First Rays has good prices for orchiata in several grades and package sizes. I just bought a bag of orchiata classic from him. Although I use sphag for most of my plants, I'm repotting a few that originally came in bark or that I had in CHC into orchiata. I'm staying with a blend of CHC and charcoal for my bigger complex hybrids, as they all seem happy in that.

[The Orchid Boy]

NEVER use Miracle-Gro "orchid mix". It is a joke, soil with a few teeny tiny pieces of bark. Orchiata is probably the best bark. You can use Better-Gro if you want to though. Ebay usually has some Orchiata cheaper and possibly free shipping. I really prefer straight sphag or a sphag/charcoal mix and put packing peanuts on the bottom for my phals.

[WhiteRabbit]

Originally Posted by The Orchid Boy

NEVER use Miracle-Gro "orchid mix". It is a joke, soil with a few teeny tiny pieces of bark. Orchiata is probably the best bark. You can use Better-Gro if you want to though. Ebay usually has some Orchiata cheaper and possibly free shipping. I really prefer straight sphag or a sphag/charcoal mix and put packing peanuts on the bottom for my phals.

There is a new chunkier Miracle Gro mix ... I can't say if it's decent or not, but likely is at least better than the original

[AngelinaMaria]

I just got bag of the Miracle-Gro orchid coarse blend. It is all bark, no soil or anything. It's pretty chunky with big pieces of bark. There's are some pieces of thin stringy bark like stuff in it too. When I used it I just grabbed a handful and picked out the few stringy pieces...some of the bark pieces I had to break by hand because they were just too big (I was repotting an orchid that was on the smaller side). Otherwise I thought it was decent....

[Jayfar]

Originally Posted by The Orchid Boy

Ebay usually has some Orchiata cheaper and possibly free shipping.

Ray is pretty inexpensive for orchiata and for shipping for those of us in PA and MD (like the OP). I got 5 liters of Orchiata for $6 (and his 40-liter bags are $34). Shipping was 10.20 (fedex), but my order included other things, a quart of kelpmax, some citric acid and 2 LED bulbs (total order shipping weight 9 lb). He uses fedex home delivery, which makes it in one day where I live.

Originally Posted by The Orchid Boy

I really prefer straight sphag or a sphag/charcoal mix and put packing peanuts on the bottom for my phals.

Sphag is my current preference for most of my smaller pots. I have a lot of Phals repotted into the 3" slotted pots, usually with a styro peanut or two in the middle and sometimes a small amount of small river rock pebbles at the bottom for ballast (lower center of gravity for those plants that want to lean). FWIW, my bale of sphag also came from Besgrow, the makers of Orchiata, via Calwest Tropical.