S/H with lava rocks?

[LisaW]

Hi, I am fairly new to this forum and orchids. I have tried orchids in S/H and is successful with them. I am away from home right now and want to transplant my sister's orchids into S/H. I am not here for long and afraid that if I order PA from Ray they won't get here before I leave. Can I use lava rocks instead? Thank you in advance for your replys. -Lisa

[Royal]

I'd say no. Ray chose prime agra for reasons after doing pretty extensive tests.

[kavanaru]

You would need to explain better your growing conditions. In theory, each inert medium would work for S/H culture. It all depends on your growing conditions. One of the main reasons Ray selected PrimeAgra (Ray, correct me here if I am wrong!) was its capillarity properties, which helps the medium to bring the water to almost the top ot the pot. I am not sure whether Lava Rock has good or bad capillarity (Have never worked with it!), but I think that if you have a very high humidity environment, it should work...

[Ray]

Actually, Lava Rock that I've played with has pretty good capillary action. The reason I rejected it is that it does not flush well for some reason, and mineral buildup is a serious problem. Those big pores also trap "gunk" really well and it is difficult to clean it.

[LisaW]

Thank you very much for all your replies. I have already placed an order with Ray after I posted this last night. Hope it will get here before I go back home.