Phals in S/H - a few root questions

[JeffreyR]

Originally Posted by Ray

As far as aerial roots are concerned, I'd have gone with a pot of sufficient diameter to permit them to enter the LECA...

I did read last night on one of your posts here that you often use pots as wide as the overall leaf span of the plant. Some of the phals I am looking at (and one that I just put in S/H) have 8-10" leaves and spans as high is 18". Would I really put such a plant in an 18" pot, having taken it from a 4.5" tall / wide container? If so, does the pot also have to be correspondingly tall, or can I stick with relatively low, but wide, pots and still expect good results? The wider pot will certainly make distributing the LECA around and within the plant roots easier!

Re the areal roots, am I waiting for them to naturally dig in and root themselves, or am I putting them into the substrate myself when I repot the plant?

I'll be moving to a larger S/H pot for some of these plants. I knew that I COULD, but didn't know that I SHOULD use the bigger pots, and will now fix that while I've got the supplies ready and the plants are not settled in and attached to the LECA.

Thanks again to everyone for the help.

[Ray]

Originally Posted by JeffreyR

I did read last night on one of your posts here that you often use pots as wide as the overall leaf span of the plant. Some of the phals I am looking at (and one that I just put in S/H) have 8-10" leaves and spans as high is 18". Would I really put such a plant in an 18" pot, having taken it from a 4.5" tall / wide container?

I have done that, but don't recommend it, only because it would have too big of a footprint.. I might go 10"-12", though.

Originally Posted by JeffreyR

If so, does the pot also have to be correspondingly tall, or can I stick with relatively low, but wide, pots and still expect good results? The wider pot will certainly make distributing the LECA around and within the plant roots easier!

I usually went with about 8"-10" tall for those - whatever can accommodate enough LECA at the bottom to start with the roots about an inch above the reservoir, yet tall enough for the top of the LECA-covered root mass to be about 1/2"-1" from the rim.

Originally Posted by JeffreyR

Re the areal roots, am I waiting for them to naturally dig in and root themselves, or am I putting them into the substrate myself when I repot the plant?

if they can be barely flexed to fit inside the pot, go for it, but they can break easily, and you don't want to do that. Waiting for the plant to act is never a bad thing in this regard.

Originally Posted by JeffreyR

I'll be moving to a larger S/H pot for some of these plants. I knew that I COULD, but didn't know that I SHOULD use the bigger pots, and will now fix that while I've got the supplies ready and the plants are not settled in and attached to the LECA.

Thanks again to everyone for the help.

Unlike Yoda's "There is no try, only do or do not...", I will say that this is not a SHOULD situation; it's a "you can, if you want" one instead.

Do not worry about LECA attaching to the roots. If it does, when you repot, you leave it there and add more to fill up the remaining space.