Beallara Big Shot 'Hilo Sparkle' - repotting for the first time

[stella_tigre]

So I just joined today, after I saw that the board was back on the air! And I only have one baby so far, Bllra. Big Shot 'Hilo Sparkle' that was a present last winter from the kids.

It bloomed two nice spikes, has three pbulbs, and this summer has two vigorous looking (to me!) sprouts. It is in Sphagnum moss, pretty tightly packed, and the outer roots look good. Hopefully my minimalist watering (witness a couple of crinkled leaves) helped keep the root rot away.

I am going to try to attach pics of the plant when I got it, and how it looks now, including the root ball...

Questions!
-Should it stay in sphag moss, or is there a better choice? (I am ordering some decent NZ moss, and have available Aqua Pebbles and perlite.)
-The thing looks a bit over-root-bound to me, even if the plants likes a tight fit. 1-inch larger pot?
-Will this keep growing out, crawling across the pot, or would it prefer to clamber up a piece of wood?
-Do these plants rely on day length for bloom, or more their own natural rhythm (bloom, grow, bloom etc)?

I think this is just the start to a long obsession, that will fit in nicely with all my others....succulents among them.

Thanks for being here!
karenj

[WhiteRabbit]

Potting media is much a matter of preference. I pot most Oncidium alliance in coconut husk chips mix, but small bark chips mix also works well.

Many orchids will grow somewhat vertically, some only slightly, others more drastically. They can still be grown in pots, but mounting is an option if you don't mind frequent watering, and can accommodate a mounted orchid. Some Onc alliance get quite big rather quickly, which is something to consider.

A lot of these types can bloom on any recently matured or maturing growth, regardless the time of year.

[MattWoelfsen]

If it is potted in a particular media, this one is in moss, I repot in moss. Oncidium alliance plants like to be root bound. When I repot oncidium, I put them in a slightly larger pot. Place root ball in its new pot and stuff potting media around the root mass.

Your plant will set back a little bit in its new pot. The set back duration will depend on how many roots are damaged in the transplant.

Also, I would not disturb the plant while in flower. You could blast the flower buds. Spring is the best time of year to repot, that is when there are no flowers and the plant starts growing new roots.

After spending the summer outside in bright light, I have brought them inside and have placed in a western facing window. I have eight plants (out of 23) that have started spiking. This is the time of year for my plants to start spiking. These eight plants are usually the first to start spiking, the rest of the plants will spike towards the end of October through December and into January. I think what triggers this cycle is going from warm, bright Summer, into cool Fall.

[My Green Pets]

It's a lovely Oncidium hybrid.

I think the plant would like a 1 inch larger pot as you said, and I would choose an 'orchid pot' meaning with slits or netting to increase air flow. Especially when potting with sphagnum, this can help us avoid the complications we get when overwatering.

Whatever you decide, it looks like you know what you're doing Can't wait to see more of your plants!

[stella_tigre]

Well, I got some NZ sphag moss today, and combined with the Aqua Pebbles (sifted through to get all 1/2 or smaller pieces) and perlite, which is what I had on hand, I took a shot at it.

How DID they cram that much moss in the pot with those roots?!? I watched several how-to videos so I wasn't too surprised. Tried not to massacre the roots too much, especially at the end with the new growth. The pot is probably too big, but I like the clay for where I've got it in the kitchen. And it had quite a few roots to stuff in....Mostly looked good, so apparently I didn't overwater the mess.

So we will let it live where it was before, with careful attention to watering, which I am sure will need to be done more often now that it's in a less densely packed and faster draining medium. Wish me luck!

[judith_arquette]

Good luck!!!

[ddivey36]

How is your plant doing?