What orchid is this and how to take care of it? - Orchid Board

SHag42 · #1 06-30-2013, 01:25 AM

Hello,

Someone gave me this orchid today and there was no tag on it. I was hoping someone could tell me what it is and how I should go about taking care of it. It looks like it is pot bound but have no idea on if I should pot it now with it in bloom. And how would I go about potting this type of orchid. Any help would be much appreciated.

bellini girl · #2 06-30-2013, 01:29 AM

Looks like a Miltassia Shelob Tolkien. Some folk repot while in bloom and the plant does not miss a beat. If this is a first for you, you may want to wait until the blooms are spent before attempting to repot. When you do repot, you may want to consider putting it in a pot one size up from the current pot. some favour moss, others bark as a media. good luck

Island Girl · #3 06-30-2013, 01:47 AM

I have a question... In your second pic, it looks like the pot is sitting in water? If it is, (if not, sorry) you need to take it out immediately, it will cause root rot. Orchids can't be left to sit in water, they like to dry out a little btwn waterings. It certainly has beautiful flowers, I love them!

If I were u, I'd wait til it was done blooming, then repot, thats usually the best time to repot anyways

SHag42 · #4 06-30-2013, 01:53 AM

Thank you. I have to say this is a strangely beautiful orchid. Happy to have it in my collection. It has one spike in bloom, one about to bloom and another one just starting. So looks like it will be in bloom for a while. The roots seem kinda dry. How often does it need to be watered?

---------- Post added at 12:53 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:47 AM ----------

Quote:

Originally Posted by Island Girl

I have a question... In your second pic, it looks like the pot is sitting in water? If it is, (if not, sorry) you need to take it out immediately, it will cause root rot. Orchids can't be left to sit in water, they like to dry out a little btwn waterings. It certainly has beautiful flowers, I love them!

If I were u, I'd wait til it was done blooming, then repot, thats usually the best time to repot anyways

It is just in a strange plastic pot with a slip on tray. I have not watered it yet because I wasn't sure how often it needed it and also tomorrow is my regular watering fertilizing day. I was thinking I should wait to pot it but it just looks so overflowing with roots. But I sure don't want to miss out on these blooms. I guess I will need to mist the exposed roots when I water.

Island Girl · #5 06-30-2013, 02:17 AM

Well, I'm not as familiar with the oncidium types, but I'll make a suggestion. If the roots seem dry, maybe (I'm assuming the roots ur talking about r the ones outside the pot?) u can mist those roots probably daily (or every other day)... They r exposed to air, so will be fine. Just don't mist/water the pot daily... The leaves, u might wanna avoid misting them (direct spray at roots) b/c oncidium types can sometimes be funny about that... Meaning, they will get spots on their leaves, and most ppl don't like that too much (it's a little unsightly).

But, the part of the plant in the pot, that, I would suggest (guess) watering once a week, but look up "the skewer method" that will help you to know when it's actually dry. These kinds (onc.) need water just before they r completely dry. Also, the pseudobulbs will start to wrinkle when they don't have enough water, just water right before they wrinkle/as they wrinkle... You may notice (i have with a couple of mine) that they seem to need just a little more water when in bloom than when not. Underwatering is better than overwatering. What is it potted in? It looks like bark, can u tell what size? 1/4" or 1/2" the smaller size holds water longer=less watering, yet, the larger dries out faster, so u will water more. One more thing, look at the roots, if they r silver in color, they can use water, but if they r green, they don't. And treat the outside-of-the-pot roots different from the inside-of-the-pot roots, for now (until you repot)

Good Luck!

...If I've got anything wrong, someone will hopefully correct me!

Everyone's conditions are different, and ultimately, all anyone can do is make suggestions... You will have to figure out what works for u, in your environment. So above my advice, listen to what your plant needs...

---------- Post added at 01:17 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:14 AM ----------

Just saw the second part of your post, (guess I was typing away, lol) yes, I would enjoy those blooms and repot after they're gone

SHag42 · #6 06-30-2013, 02:49 AM

Hey Island Girl,

Thank you for all the great info. I measured the pot it is 3 1/4 w x 4 deep. I counted 16 pseudobulbs and it looks like it has been potted in a bark and perlite mix with some kinda fake green moss. There is not much mix in the pot it seems like just roots. Probably why there was no tag the roots ate it.