oncidium s/h question

[BD11]

Well like most of you I have jumped on the semi hydro band wagon. From what I have read a lot of different orchids seem to grow well in this setup. I also researched full water culture but it seems like that can be iffy if you don’t know what you’re doing and basically seems harder to maintain that semi hydro.

So about 1 month ago I converted 3 orchids to semi hydro. 1 mini phal, 1 dendrobium, and one oncidium. The phal seems to be doing great it is putting out a new root and a new leaf. The dendrobium seems to be ok, no new growth and it lost a few older leaves but so far the main cane is still plump and green.

The oncidium seems to be the one that is sulking a bit. Its bulbs are really wrinkly and it lost an older leaf. However, it did the same thing for a couple of months last year when I repotted it in bark. My question is I just noticed it has the beginnings of a spike which sucks because I am wondering if I should cut it since I want it to grow roots instead. Therefore, should I cut it now or just give it more time to adjust?

One last question do you give a dry out period in semi hydro? I have seen two different opinions, the first one is never let the leca completely dry out so fill the reservoir as soon as it is empty or second let it dry out a couple days before you refill.

I am wondering which method is correct?

Thanks in advance for your comments.

[fooferdoggie]

I never let them dry out. I shut cut out food in the winter. it takes them awhile to recover.

[fishmom]

Your goal is to maintain a moist, airy atmosphere around the roots. That will only happen if you prevent complete drying. You should be flushing out the pot each time youi water, bringing the level up to the top and then letting the water run out the drainage holes until it stops. Just topping it up to the drainage-hole-level will concentrate the salts in the water.


One month is a very short time in orchid terms. You've already seen how this plant responds to transplanting. Give it a chance to recover. Personally, I would remove the spike to promote root growth, but if youi are consistent in your care it will probably grow either way.

[estación seca]

The time to move to S/H is when new root growth is just beginning. People sometimes forget that. Plants might struggle for months if moved at the wrong time.

[MrHappyRotter]

Something to consider is that 1 month ago was the middle of winter. That's generally a time frame when a lot of orchids are resting, assuming you're not in a tropical/subtropical region of the country, and if they're resting, that's usually not an ideal time to repot.

Your best bet is to repot once you see new roots forming. For sympodial orchids, this occurs once the plant has developed new growths and those new growths are large enough to begin developing roots. This is especially important when transferring plants to a completely different potting media and growing technique.

It may help explain why the Oncidium is suffering a bit, so I thought I'd mention it for future reference. If you repotted it in bark less than a year ago, it may have still be in recovery mode, so another change might have pushed it a bit too much. Otherwise, if you repotted it last year around the same time and it sulked then as well, that definitely suggests that winter is not the right time of year to repot this particular plant. So keep that in mind if you ever need to repot it again.

As for the plant's flower spike(s), it's possible that it is blooming in season, but it's also possible that it is stress blooming. Either way, if the plant is unhealthy, stressed, and trying to adapt to its new accommodations, and especially if there's any doubt, I'd just cut the spikes.

[Ray]

1) Warm the plant up. Bottom heat, via a seedling heat mat, is a definite plus when it comes to stimulating root growth. Also, you might consider KelpMax to stimulate root grow even more.

2) Not only do you not want to let the LECA dry out between waterings, you don't want the reservoir to run dry either.

The liquid in the reservoir and that in the medium change chemistry over time, as nutrients are extracted, plants wastes are collected, and evaporation occurs. The longer between waterings, the "sourer" it becomes.

The more frequently you water, the better your plants will grow.

3) When you water, ALWAYS use very dilute fertilizer solution and ALWAYS rapidly fill the pot to the top and let it drain. NEVER just top up the reservoir.

[BD11]

Thanks for all your replies. I will keep it wet then. I actually kept it pretty wet in the bark too but I started seeing mold however the plan seemed to do well. I have a heat mat so I will bring it upstairs and put it on it. I have not been giving it anything other than KLN to help with the roots.

It is blooming on a new growth but I didn’t think that new growth was quite mature yet. Also, I have quite a few oncidiums putting out new growth right now which did seem strange to me because it is still winter here. I have one that has a bloom spike and a new growth right now. I live in the Chicago area.

When I repotted this plant this time last year I had to because it was packed really tight it moss that looked really old. I have to say though every oncidium I have repotted has shriveled a bit for a couple months no matter when I repotted them. I thought that was pretty normal since I disturbed the roots and I had to be pretty aggressive to get all the moss off of them. One big reason I want to use semi hydro is less repotting so the less I will have to disturb them.

---------- Post added at 12:30 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:13 PM ----------

So I just took the plant to the sink and flushed it out real good before filling the reservoir again and I just noticed three new roots coming out of the base of the plant. They are coming off of the new growth that is putting out the flower spike.

At this point I will just give it more time but I feel I will have to cut that spike. Even though I really hate to do it. This is the first time it has bloomed since I got it. It had bloomed before because it had an old spike on it when I bought it.

[Ray]

If the thing is actively growing new roots and a spike, it seems to think it has the resources to do so, so why sacrifice it?

[BD11]

I would love for the spike to stay so for now I will leave it alone and keep an eye on it. I will keep giving it the KLN but should I give it some fertilizer too or wait until it starts plumps up bit more? I haven’t fertilized it for a couple months.