Is it ok to only have air circulation from the top?
 

Hello. I've seen recommendations not to put orchids in a tight decorative pot not to restrict air circulation. However, I have this orchid (prosthechea cochleata) potted in a quite coarse and not very water retentive media (gravel, coarse bark and pieces of terracotta). Wouldn't it just keep a humid environment inside the pot and let some air come in from the top?

I'm just trying to use a very common (at least here) and cheap kind of media and not have to water every single day

https://i.imgur.com/ImeoFtY.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/2CscIwx.jpg

Air-flow through the media and around the roots can help cut down on certain unwanted activity from occurring down in the depths of the media (and around the roots).

But whether issues can occur or not down in those depths also depends on the environmental conditions in and around the growing area ----- humidity, air movement etc. Usually - some natural air-movement is beneficial. This is assuming conditions where humidity is satisfactory for orchids.

One consideration is ------ if that system (with the decorative pot) works continually nicely for the way you grow the orchid, then it's actually ok to use the decorative pot. But if for some reason you notice certain issues that could be due to having the decorative pot there -------- then it's possible to make some amendments ----- such as to not use a decorative pot.

Some people do use decorative pots without issues. It's just a matter of having and maintaining conditions that are suitable for the orchid ----- suitable over long periods of time.

A slightly larger decorative pot will let more air circulate around the roots if you notice any problems.

Prosthechea cochleata does not like going dry. I myself would not try to grow it like that. I wouldn't even try standard S/H with LECA because I don't have time to water every day.

I don't grow the cochleata, but grow a radiata. I don't know if these two have different requirements or not.

For my radiata, when I first started to grow it ----- maybe 15 months ago or so, I transferred it to scoria when it arrived. The tropical conditions here supports the radiata nicely. Just uploading a few pics of it - taken around half an hour ago.

Also one pic of where I normally put it ------ right next to a Spath. plicata ------ also growing in the same size scoria. When I first got the plicata, the leaves were like little 1 cm shoots. So even 'terrestrial' orchids can do just fine in scoria in the tropics.

If the environment supports the orchid - and it continues to grow well - then that is a good thing. So maintaining adequate humidity, water, temperature lighting etc ----- is the main aim. And watch out for attacking insects and mites etc.

If a growing area has humidity too low, or dryness of roots and/or the media impacts the plant negatively, then definitely makes sense to make some adjustments - change media type, alter watering schedule etc - to get better conditions for the orchid to grow.

T.P.M. ------- you could also mention roughly how long you have been growing this orchid for.

If the orchid has been doing just fine for quite a long time now ------ then that will be nice.

Otherwise, if you are only just starting to test whether or not the decorative pot is workable or not, then that's ok too. Just do the usual - and monitor the health of the orchid closely.

What kind of media would you recommend? I thought they liked drying out. I did add a little bit of sphag just below the top pebbles. It's just growing new roots so I think I could add some more sphag or coconut husk without damaging the tips.

It's indoors and I've been monitoring humidity and it hovers around 60-80% everyday. It's quite warm though, 23-32 C (73 to 90 F).

I got it about a month ago as a division and it looks a bit dehydrated but I thought it was because it doesn't have many roots. The roots it did have are branching and the new growth is shooting new roots so I think it's doing fine so far.

A lot of people use just gravel as a medium here but grow outdoors so they get rain too so that's why I'm not sure.

Those new roots look great. TPM, I think that you have rather high humidity, so this might work for you. I agree with Leafmite on the slightly larger outer pot. But the medium is so open it may be fine. I grow in in medium-large bark, have it in both clay and plastic pots. So my plants do stay on the damp side. Is there a place where you can grow it it outside?

Yeah that was what I was thinking. Normally I wouldn't put it in such a tight outer pot but I thought it could work. I do have a balcony but it's south-facing and gets full sun until after noon so I'd need to set up a shaded area.