How can I prep phals for S/H?

[seaj]

Hello,

I'm very new to plants in general, but I'm thinking about buying some phalaenopsis since they are recommended for people new to orchids. The last phal I had drowned very shortly after it was given to me because the container it was in didn't have any drainage holes. It probably didn't help that I watered it everyday. That was 10 years ago and I've since learned better.

Anyways, the Pacific Orchid Expo in San Francisco is coming soon and I think it will be a great event to attend. I also hear that there are many specialty shops at the San Francisco Flower Mart that offer blooming orchids all year long.

I'm doing a little experiment with hippeastrum in semi-hydro so I pretty much have all the supplies needed to expand to orchids. From what I've read, the plants are suppose to be transfered to S/H only when they are growing new roots.

My question is: If a plant is going to be transfered to S/H but isn't currently growing new roots, how can I encourage it do so? Would using a heat mat and K-L-N prior to the transfer help? I know that helps plants that have already been transfered.

Thanks.

[zxyqu]

Addition of a rooting stimulant or a heat mat may increase rooting some, but most often it's cultural conditions. Some phals put out new roots year round, others only in spring or fall. So, you'll have to let the plant decide when is right. Also, check out Rays website at: firstrays.com. It has lots of good free info

[Bud]

While my plant was still in bloom right from the store, I didnt wait for anything. I looked for the sphag ball on the roots, carefully took it out with the help of running water on the sink and when the roots were neat and clean, I gently repotted it all on S/H.

[Ray]

The science behind "new roots" is that the cells have to adapt to the environment as they grow, so they can function well and fully support the plant.

While both rooting hormones and under-pot heating will encourage root growth, if you do that before the transplant, they will be tailoring themselves the that environment, not the new one. You're better off cleaning the old medium off the roots, potting it up, and then applying the encouragements.

FWIW - phals tend to be grown pretty wet to start with, so the transition into S/H is usually not as stressful as it might be for a plant formerly grown more on the dry side. The roots, therefore, will not be so far off that they won't function at all in the new conditions, making the transition easier. Just keep them very warm, and they'll likely do fine.

[seaj]

Thanks for all the information everyone. I'll report back soon once I get some plants to experiment on.

[johnblagg]

what I always do is put them into hydrotron in a regular pot and keep them in it untill new roots start and with them in it you can water more often and it wont be long before new roots start ...the last one I bought at Home depo was moved to hydroton as soon as the blooms dropped and within two weeks had nice roots popping out ....

[seaj]

Alright, so I headed over to check out a second local farmer's market just to see what they had available (this is what I found at the first - Oncidium Sharry Baby 'Ruby Doll'?) and this one had 3 vendors. The vendor I got this from only sold NOID phals for $6-$15, but when I passed by a second time the mini one's were only $5. They were too cute to pass up so I bought one for myself, and my sister bought a second for herself (which will be coming my way as soon as the blooms are done). Mine is really a deep eggplant color, and I should have picked one with a branching spike. This is a new root growing in right? Enough reason to transfer now?

[johnblagg]

yes and yes...

I transfer phals into hydrotron from bark and just grow them in hydrotron...s/h works great too