Transferring Oncidium to Semi-Hydro...

[Momo]

Should I? I unexpectedly picked up this Onc. Jiuhbao Gold 'Tainan' AM/AOS when I went shopping today for Christmas decorations. Early Christmas gift for me I guess! Lol. Anyways, I was wondering when it would be the best time to transfer it?

The root system doesn't seem very strong- most of it is mushy- as well as the problem with the wrinkly dehydrated psuedobulbs so should I wait till it loses its flowers and wait for- hopefully- some stronger roots before attempting? And how about for the little baby piece? It had already broken off before I even repotted the mama plant with what little roots still attached.

I'm just not too sure since for right now they are both potted in bark, perlite and charcoal mix now and that dries out VERY quickly near my southern facing window since I have a ceiling fan running constantly near it whereas the leca would maybe increase the amount of water accessible to the plant? I definitely don't want to kill the poor thing by transferring before it has enough energy to adjust.

Please let me know what you think!

[DelawareJim]

Ouch. That plant is in rough shape. Since you unpotted it, you might as well pot it up in s/h. You've got nothing to lose. I would cut off the flowers and get it out of the southern window. You might want to try getting some KelpMax from Ray and trying it to help induce rooting. I don't know if there is enough energy left in the bulbs to start new roots.

Cheers.
Jim

[Paul Mc]

The psuedobulbs are severely dried out! You should know that plants Ted to suffer a bit (or sulk) when first planet to SH. Personally, I'd recommend just potting it in as small of a pot as possible, remove it from the light, get a rooting hormone (like KLN or the one Ray offers or similar) and just try to keep it alive for now. New roots and growth tend to start in the spring. I'd personally wait until you see some active root growth starting before attempting it. Maybe Ray can chime in on this as well

[Ray]

I agree that the's a pretty sorry specimen with a less-than-great chance of survival, but if that was my plant, I'd do the following:

1) Submerge it completely in tepid water containing about a tablespoon of KelpMax per gallon, and leave it for 30-60 minutes.

2) Pot it up in a semi-hydro pot.

3) Set the pot on a heat mat.

4) Invert a clear plastic bag over the plant and pot to trap the humidity.

5) Hope and pray.

[bkey]

Not sure if yours might do the same this time of year, but this past July, I removed and separated the 3 oldest wrinkly pb's from an oncidopsis. They were rootless and an experiment to see if they would sprout new growth. I sat them upright in a clay pot for support and would spritz them with water on a daily basis. Within a few weeks, new growth appeared on each and in another couple of weeks, the babies had all sprouted new roots. They are currently potted in a sphag mix in clay and doing well, each several inches tall.

[Paul Mc]

Fall and winter is when a lot if orchids cease to produce new roots. They generally start tee growth cycles again in Te spring when things start warming up. I believe this may have been the reason Ray was suggesting you use a heat mat, to trick the root zone into growing roots since its cooling off outside.