Angraecum didieri on bark mount

[junebug's orchids]

Sorry that the moss pack is unattractive XD it's fresh out of the bale.

Reinflating slowly as time goes on LOL.



I threw this together last night. Looking at it again, I think I'm going to redo it when I get home tonight. It's hard to get these things to sit right using thread! And I was advised not to use epoxies on orchids, so I'm pretty well stuck with thread.

Other than it insisting on lying at a weird angle, do you see any problems with the mount?

[Paul]

Nope. I'd just suggest using a better quality moss.

[junebug's orchids]

Originally Posted by Paul

Nope. I'd just suggest using a better quality moss.

Thanks! I'm actually planting live moss on the bark as soon as the rest of the plants arrive. Not sure if I'll even need the sphagnum in the end, but if I find it's not staying moist enough, I'll be getting much prettier sphagnum for a permanent solution

[Roberta]

Andy uses 12 lb. mono-filament fishing line. He has found that 12 lb is the "sweet spot" - 10 lb breaks too easily and 14 lb is too stiff and hard to work with. I use it and agree, it is an excellent all-purpose material for mounting. And since it is clear, it doesn't detract from the plant, being nearly invisible. Unless a plant really needs to stay moist (such as pleurothallids) I have found that it works better to use no moss under between the roots and the mount. If a little extra moisture is needed, then I'll put a bit of moss on top of the roots. I have found that if there is moss between the roots and the mount, the roots tend to just grow into the moss, instead of getting intimate with the mount. Sometimes the roots are aggressive enough that I don't have to remount, but if they are not grabbing the mount because of the moss, I will. If I cut the fish line and it stays on the mount, it's fine, I'll just tie a loop or two of new line to be sure the plant is supported. But if I cut the line and the plant falls off the mount into my hand, it needs remounting. (Not immediately, after the plant has had a chance to grow for a year or so I'll do this test)

If you can tell which side of the plant is producing roots more, be sure that side is toward the mount. Monopodials like the Angrecoids and Vanda pretty much put out roots in all directions, some will grab the mount and others may ramble. For sympodials such as Cattleya, Oncidium, etc it is critical to determine the direction of growth and put the newest growth toward the mount... and the time to do it is when roots are just emerging, or they won't grab on. That can be a little counter-intuitive, since it tends to look better with the newer growth outward. But if you do that, it will never attach to the mount - only the actively-growing part of the plant will attach, so you need to make sure that part is in in closest proximity. Also look at which way it is going (up or down) to position it to get the longest time before it climbs beyond its mount,.

[junebug's orchids]

Originally Posted by Roberta

Andy uses 12 lb. mono-filament fishing line. He has found that 12 lb is the "sweet spot" - 10 lb breaks too easily and 14 lb is too stiff and hard to work with. I use it and agree, it is an excellent all-purpose material for mounting. And since it is clear, it doesn't detract from the plant, being nearly invisible. Unless a plant really needs to stay moist (such as pleurothallids) I have found that it works better to use no moss under between the roots and the mount. If a little extra moisture is needed, then I'll put a bit of moss on top of the roots. I have found that if there is moss between the roots and the mount, the roots tend to just grow into the moss, instead of getting intimate with the mount. Sometimes the roots are aggressive enough that I don't have to remount, but if they are not grabbing the mount because of the moss, I will. If I cut the fish line and it stays on the mount, it's fine, I'll just tie a loop or two of new line to be sure the plant is supported. But if I cut the line and the plant falls off the mount into my hand, it needs remounting. (Not immediately, after the plant has had a chance to grow for a year or so I'll do this test)

If you can tell which side of the plant is producing roots more, be sure that side is toward the mount. Monopodials like the Angrecoids and Vanda pretty much put out roots in all directions, some will grab the mount and others may ramble. For sympodials such as Cattleya, Oncidium, etc it is critical to determine the direction of growth and put the newest growth toward the mount... and the time to do it is when roots are just emerging, or they won't grab on. That can be a little counter-intuitive, since it tends to look better with the newer growth outward. But if you do that, it will never attach to the mount - only the actively-growing part of the plant will attach, so you need to make sure that part is in in closest proximity. Also look at which way it is going (up or down) to position it to get the longest time before it climbs beyond its mount,.

Thank you! Such good info. Now I know what I'll do with it when I remount it in a few days.

The moss from the bale wasn't puffing up when I rehydrated, so I got a less ugly moss to use since I needed a different stuff anyway. I'll be sure to post pics once it's done.

And yeah, the angraecum has roots going all over the place, but I'll look for any new growth and try to place it closest to the wood.

[junebug's orchids]

Well, it's done (until the last few plants arrive, anyway )








(A couple of the jewels look like they're gonna make it!)

[Fairorchids]

Using fishing line is common, but it is pain in the neck to tie off while keeping it tight.

I use florists wire (metal wire with green finish). It is easy to tie on, and easy to remove after a year or so, when the roots have taken hold. Also, it holds the shape if you bend it, so it usually holds the moss well with a single 'criss-cross'.

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by Fairorchids

Using fishing line is common, but it is pain in the neck to tie off while keeping it tight.
.

The trick I use is to tie a little loop in one end of the fish line before I start, Then, I can thread the other end through the loop and pull tight while I'm holding the plant in place, and then do what ever number of additional wraps I need to secure all that I need to secure. The free end can then just be threaded behind one of those loops, a couple of half-hitches, pull tight to secure and done.

[junebug's orchids]

I ended up using brown cotton thread because it's what I had. Next time I may use fishing line (I'm out of thread now HAHA) or I may just use whatever I have handy. Florists twine is probably the easiest HAHA and I may have some left over from my wedding.... so.... perhaps. We'll see.