Repotting a Phal hybrid--suggestions for a beginner?

[vlhart]

Hi there--

I'm very new to orchids and just bought a phal hybrid at a big box store that looks pretty root bound (the roots look healthy and don't seem rotted from what I can see).

Questions:

From what I've read, it seems I should wait to repot it until the flowers have dropped and the spike has dried and I should put new media in and clip any dead roots. I'm planning to use a Phal orchid mix from Repotme that's mostly sphagnum moss--Good plan?

I've read that I should put cinnamon on the ends of the roots--but I've also read that doing this will dry out the roots--what do you suggest?

The orchid is currently in a plastic pot with one hole in the bottom. I live in an apartment in NYC and have low humidity so I've read that it's better to keep it potted than in a wooden basket. Is another plastic container best or would you recommend something else? Does it need more holes than just the bottom one?

Any tips and suggestions are welcome!

[RandomGemini]

Well, if you have ordered potting medium from repotme, then I am surprised that you missed this video:

Orchid Care Video - Repotting a Phalaenopsis

This is pretty much how I do it.

There is a thread at the top of the beginner forum that is called "The Phal Abuse Ends Here" read the first 12 pages or so of this thread. The advice here is so worth the time it will take you to read it. Phals can be quite tough, even though they are the most commonly available orchid, don't feel bad if you kill this one. I've killed several phals in my time. It took me a while to find some hybrids that grow well for me in my conditions.

[wintergirl]

Phals like to be tight in the pot. The roots all at the top are air roots and not really "root bound" Keep the phal sitting out in the plastic pot so you can see the roots and they can be exposed to light. When the ones inside the pot are silver/white then water. I think spag moss retains too much water for a large phal. You would be better off re-potting with a large to medium fir bark. If your phal is in bark right now, it probably doesn't need re-potting yet. Phals can be re-potted at anytime but it's better to wait until flowers have gone.

[vlhart]

RandomGemini: Yep, I watched the video. Just had a few more questions as well as I'm not in quite the same conditions as they have in the video.

And thanks--I'll read through that thread.

Wintergirl: Thanks for the tips! I know the roots up top don't mean it's root bound, but inside the pot it looks pretty cramped. But if that's the way it likes to be, great. And it is in bark. So you think spag moss is too much even for a pretty dry apartment?

[RandomGemini]

For most folks, yes, moss is going to cause problems, especially for beginners. Moss stays too wet for too long.

No cinnamon on roots, ever. Cinnamon is a desiccate. It will completely dehydrate roots. Cinnamon is for cut leaves ONLY.

I think the best thing you can do for your big box store phal (and I get it, my first Phals came from big box stores too!) is leave it alone.

Yep, I mean it. Leave it alone. Let it sit for a week. Don't water it. Don't repot it. Don't do ANYTHING. Let it dry out completely before watering it again. I would give it about two weeks before I tried to fertilize and then I would reevaluate the condition of the roots when they are not water logged. Big box stores tend to overwater these plants to death, which is why I always tell folks not to feel bad if they die. It's likely not your fault.

[snowflake311]

I like to repot all my new orchids. I got this one that was very very neglected. I did not wait to repotted it. It's doing really well. Anything was better than the VERY compacted moss that was slowly killing the roots. I got this plant before the roots did rot. They were not that healthy looking. It is recovering really well. These plants can take abuse.

I live where it is kind of dry. So I use a Moss bark mix for all my orchids. Some get more moss others get less. My Phals get less moss in the mix. Don't forget when you repot with Bark be sure to keep a close eye on how dry it feels or looks. New bark is bad at holding in moisture.

A moss bark mix in a plastic pot with extra holes works best for My Phals. I do have 3 Phals potting in Clay. The small ones dry out really fast. I just have to keep a close eye on them and they do great.

My larger Phal had lots of roots sticking out of the pot. Pretty much all the roots were trying to get out of the pot. This plant did turn out to be extremely root bound. It was in a 3 inch pot I had to cut it out of. I moved it into a 6 inch pot . The roots filled the the whole pot but still has room for growth. It was amazing how the roots curled around the pot so many times.

If the plant is in fine shape I will wait a week or month to repot. But if I have a plant that clearly needs to be repotted. I do not wait. When I was visiting my family back East I saw lots of Orchids from Just Add Ice. I bought 3 for my family when I was there. The ones I bought were in GREAT Shape and did not need to be repotted. So I felt good giving them as a gift. Here on the West coast all most all Phals are in Moss.

That's just my 2 cents.