Repotting my bifoliate catt

[Roberta]

I would do it now... Ideal time is just BEFORE the new roots, so that you minimize damage... when they emerge they will move right into their new home. Don't try to remove all the old bark - remove what comes off easily, but leave the rest, so that you don't damage good roots that may be stuck to pieces of bark.

[rbarata]

Thanks for the advise, Roberta.
I'll post photos of the work.

[rbarata]

Today went shopping thinking about the mix I would do for the medium. I want to put the plant in the basket and don't want to repot it in the next 5 years (if that's possible).

I'm planning to use:

50% coarse bark (approx. 2 to 3 cm <=> 1 to 1,5")
25% cork chips (diameters average 0,5 cm <=> 0,2 ")
25% leca

About the basket, remember its inner dimensions are 20x20x15 cm (7.8x7.8x5.9 in).
I'll reduce it's height to 4" allow a faster water evaporation.

Do you think I'm making good choices?

[Roberta]

Since you are using large bark, the fact that the basket is rather large for the plant probably is not important - especially if you cut down the height... you will be treating it pretty much as a mounted plant, drying out well between waterings. 5 years? Maybe, though most bark will break down before that... so you will still end up repotting sooner than that (though it might be OK if it doesn't stay wet). Besides, if the plant is happy, it will be growing out of the basket anyway. Three years is a more realistic time goal - either you will have to replace the bark, or you will have to deal with an overgrown plant by then.

[Leafmite]

I use red lava rock as my medium for all my Cattleyas with a plastic basket pot. In that way, I never need to transplant the orchid. If it outgrows the pot, I drop it into a larger one with more lava rock.

[bil]

Originally Posted by rbarata

Today went shopping thinking about the mix I would do for the medium. I want to put the plant in the basket and don't want to repot it in the next 5 years (if that's possible).

I'm planning to use:

50% coarse bark (approx. 2 to 3 cm <=> 1 to 1,5")
25% cork chips (diameters average 0,5 cm <=> 0,2 ")
25% leca

About the basket, remember its inner dimensions are 20x20x15 cm (7.8x7.8x5.9 in).
I'll reduce it's height to 4" allow a faster water evaporation.

Do you think I'm making good choices?

Well, as long as you don't choke the airways in the bark it should be OK. Personally in your shoes I would use large bark and nothing else.
Altho, I now have all my cattleyas on mounts with a bit of sphagnum moss.

[rbarata]

Well, as long as you don't choke the airways in the bark it should be OK.

That's something I thought about...I'm not sure if the cork chips are big enough to improve drainage. Maybe they're so small that they will fill the voids between the bark chunks.

[Leafmite]

The medium or set up you use doesn't matter as long as it allows enough air to the roots to prevent fungus from flourishing. It's main purpose is to keep the air around the roots humid enough so that the roots do not dry out too quickly. You can look at Repotme's site for ideas of materials to use for a mix.

Orchid Supplies from rePotme.com - Orchid Mix - Orchid Pots - Orchid Care - Orchid Fertilizer

[rbarata]

Update

Repotting countdown has begun. I'll do it this weekend.
About the subject of using a net to avoid the medium falling through the basket's wood slats I've found a plastic net used to protect what you need from birds. It's from a french manufacturer so probably can't be found in the US...anyway, that's an idea and probably you'll have something similar.

Here's some photos:

[Roberta]

That net looks perfect. One can get similar material in the 'states. I use the mesh bags that are used for some vegetables at the market (just cut them) or some mesh tubes (again, cut them) that I got from an orchid vendor who used them for shipping, was going to throw them away after unpacking at a show. Same concept.