Is this Oncidium ready for S/H?

[Olivia]

I bought this Onc. Heaven Scent "Sweet Baby" a couple months ago and planned to put it in S/H as soon as it had enough new growth. I heard that you should wait until the new pbulbs are half the size of the old one (for new root growth).

It now has four new growths, but I think only one is even close to being at "half" size. But this is my first onc so I'm not really sure. Does the new growth look like it will be able to support the plant if the old roots die off?

To compound things this is my first experiment with S/H... if/when the older roots die off do they need to be removed? I don't want to disturb the plant all the time but what do you typically do with this?

Thanks!

PS - any other S/H advice is greatly appreciated, and yes, I have been studying Ray's website

[Ray]

The more precise question is "Are those new growths forming root nubs?". You should be able to see them at their bases, if so.

If yes, go for it. If no, go for it anyway (assuming they are in active growth), as they have plenty of resources to sustain them while they do grow new roots.

[Olivia]

I don't think I see any nubs unless they've gone down into the moss which is packed pretty well with about a million roots. I guess it sounds like I should just soak it, pry away the moss, and take the plunge

[Eyebabe]

I tried s/h for about one year with my oncidium type orchids and they neither thrived nor perished.
I have recently changed them back to Aussie Gold and they seem to like it better.
This species is quite resilient and...
You never know until you try

[zxyqu]

Your pbulbs seem pretty plump, so once you see root nubs from the largest growth, I'd say go for it as well. If they are in sphag now, S/H wont be too much of a disturbance. I'd really encourage a heat map to improve the recovery rate.