Good candidates for S/H?

[Corsetière]

Hello! I am fairly new to orchid growing in general and I am considering trying S/H. I read Ray's website (a few times) and so I think I have a decent understanding of what I need to do. I read that it is wise to wait for new root growth before switching over to S/H, so I am thinking about trying my Blc. Shannon Conner 'Pink Paradise'. She was one of those Lowe's bag babies and was extremely desiccated when I got her. Now she is getting a lot of new roots but her leaves are a bit wrinkly looking. I'm guessing this is just because she lost so many roots when I got her, am I right? Or is there another factor at work here?



Also I have this new keiki I am tempted to try in S/H. I just put it on top of some sphag last week. Since the roots are still growing can I transfer to S/H without killing it? Or should I wait until it is older? I did read that I should use a heat mat with it and I do have one ready for it.


Do you have any thoughts or opinions on transferring these two to S/H?

[RosieC]

Personally I would probably give it a go with new roots showing like that. I've only done a few though so others might have a different opinion.

[Ray]

If you're gonna try it, don't wait any longer!

[RosieC]

I agree with Ray. I forgot to say that, they look as though they are about to go down into the medium and you want them to do that in the new S/H environment not the existing one.

[DTEguy]

They are right, don't wait any longer.

But be very very careful when you re-pot, any damage to the green tips will cause the roots to stop growing and they are not long enough to branch new tips.

[Corsetière]

Thanks for your thoughts everyone. It's so hard to know what to do when you don't have a ton of experience.

What about the keikis? Have people had luck going straight to S/H with them or is it best to wait until they are older?

[Ray]

I think that if you understand the following concept, it'll be clearer:

As roots grow, they "tailor" themselves on a cellular level to function optimally in that environment. Once they have grown, the cells cannot change.

When you move a plant that has grown in one environment into another, the roots will likely be less-than-optimal for that new environment, so will have difficulty supporting the plant. New roots that grow, however, will be perfect for the job.

So, to be on the safest side, the best time to repot a plant is right when new roots are just emerging from the plant.

[Corsetière]

I see. I thought that all I needed was newish roots with a green tip. Rather, it is best to catch the roots right when they emerge. Thanks for the clarification.

[Ray]

"Newish" is probably also OK.

Where folks get into trouble is interpreting "new roots" as including new growth on existing roots.

The new growth will, indeed, tailor itself to the new environment, but the existing, older parts of the roots cannot, so will die, separating the new root growth from the plant.

If you grow in an organic medium that can decompose, you'll sometimes see the same phenomenon if you don't repot often enough - as the medium decomposes, the environment changes, so the roots that grew in the fresh medium environment will start to fail, but might get new, viable growth at the tips.

[bennnn]

I'm curious about doing my rescued orchid like this, I have to find out what it is first though.