Pros and Cons of S/H?

[Reeses]

Thanks, that's a good tip! My other two are pretty small still

[mtorchid]

My Phals thrive in s/h in Montana and they had no trouble adapting to lower humidity and temps- 30% and 55 degrees nigh time in winter. I've never used heat mats either. My Paph loves s/h as do my Oncs, Catts, Pots and Dens. As Ray pointed out, clay pellets are just one component with watering regime a vital aspect. I have some succulents in s/h and as I mentioned my Paph loves it, but entirely different water/reservoir setups.

---------- Post added at 06:55 AM ---------- Previous post was at 06:40 AM ----------

Originally Posted by WaterWitchin

I am just now experimenting with mounting them... and find I really, really like it. But will likely, for now, keep the majority in S/H... at least until I'm sure being mounted likes me as much as I like mounting.

I have mounted a couple of mini phals on cork bark and really enjoy the more "natural" look but plan to keep the majority in s/h, too. I also enjoy showing the mounted orchids to folks who don't know orchids - that "what do you mean they grow on trees!!??" look on their faces is priceless

[Corsetière]

The only downsides I can think of are:

1) Some of the larger plants can get a little heavy (especially if you use glass containers to hold them, like me). If you have to take them to a sink to flush them with water, it is a little difficult.

2) The salt build up can sometimes be an annoyance. I am looking into my water situation to combat this.

But the pros for S/H are amazing!

1) The media is cleanable, unlike bark which just gets thrown away. I boil and reuse my LECA, but I imagine you could put it in a pressure cooker as well?

2) When the plants have as much water as they want and enough airflow between the LECA, the growth is amazing! I mean, look at this dendrobium that I repotted only 3 weeks ago!



I really can't say enough good things about S/H. It has revolutionized my growing.

[NYCorchidman]

I agree, but one thing to point out.

That picture is rather misleading to use as a benefit of s/h because it really has nothing to do with s/h.

That is what dendrobiums do when new canes begin to make new roots.

Pictures showing what how much and in what conditions the roots are after those roots go into the potting mix, will be great examples to use to back s/h.

[ALToronto]

Originally Posted by NYCorchidman

I agree, but one thing to point out.

That picture is rather misleading to use as a benefit of s/h because it really has nothing to do with s/h.

That is what dendrobiums do when new canes begin to make new roots.

Pictures showing what how much and in what conditions the roots are after those roots go into the potting mix, will be great examples to use to back s/h.

This was exactly my point in my earlier post. Aereal roots can sustain an orchid nicely, regardless of what medium its other roots are growing in. Sometimes the new roots will grow into the LECA, and sometimes they'll climb outside the pot altogether and hang in the air, picking up the odd drop of water.

I've killed too many plants in s/h to be a proponent of the method. Great if it works for you, don't be surprised or upset if it doesn't.

[Corsetière]

Here's the thing though, I have never had any orchid (dendrobium or otherwise) react this way in my environment. The only culture change I have instituted in my environment is the switch to S/H. So, no, I wouldn't say it is misleading. And nearly all of my orchids react similarly now in S/H whereas before they never achieved this sort of vigorous root growth. Here are some images of a couple of my catts and an oncidium. And of course I have lots of photos of the roots established in the medium as well.







---------- Post added at 11:53 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:41 AM ----------

Here's one with roots in the LECA.

[Vanda lover]

I have grown many plants in s/h over the years. The clay pellets are hard to get here, so I use small pieces of lava rock. It's cheap and I think it works better. One thing I hate about the pellets is that if the container tips, the pellets run away and you are chasing them all over. I have a sharry baby, prag, reed stemmed epi, miltonopsis and paphs all in s/h lava rock and happy.

[Paul]

For me the con is anything I've tried with it dies.

The pro is it gives me a way to kill off an unwanted plant under the auspices of "trying something new".

[NYCorchidman]

Originally Posted by Corsetière

Here's the thing though, I have never had any orchid (dendrobium or otherwise) react this way in my environment. The only culture change I have instituted in my environment is the switch to S/H. So, no, I wouldn't say it is misleading. And nearly all of my orchids react similarly now in S/H whereas before they never achieved this sort of vigorous root growth. Here are some images of a couple of my catts and an oncidium. And of course I have lots of photos of the roots established in the medium as well.







---------- Post added at 11:53 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:41 AM ----------

Here's one with roots in the LECA.

I don't know, you might have kept your orchids too dry in the past perhaps?

But it is misleading because as I mentioned earlier, that is how orchids root regarless of the mix. They haven't met the mix yet. lol

Also, the other picture only shows one or two roots in the LECA. I am only trying to say that none of those pictures are something that will encourage others to try s/h, so don't take it personally.

---------- Post added at 10:48 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:46 PM ----------

Originally Posted by Paul

For me the con is anything I've tried with it dies.

The pro is it gives me a way to kill off an unwanted plant under the auspices of "trying something new".

That is funny!

[Corsetière]

lol. I don't know what to tell you. I have more than 50 orchids growing in S/H. Clearly it just works well for me. I have many plants with established roots in the media, as I'm sure many other people in this forum do.