Repot Bellina orchid in spike - Orchid Board

Vasilisa · #1 02-18-2019, 12:01 AM

everyone. I really enjoy this forum. Everyone is very friendly and helpful. Thank you. I have a new girl in my collection - fragrant BELLINA "STAR" Phal. This orchid is different than my other phalaenopsis orchids. The media and the pot bother me and I am so anxious to repot it. The orchid has two nice spikes. Can I repot the Bellina Phal in spike? I am afraid that I might damage the roots accidently while repotting. Also, as far as I know, many orchids do not like to be repotted and take some time to recover from the stress. I don't want it to affect the new spikes.

aliceinwl · #2 02-18-2019, 02:20 AM

I don't have any P. bellina, but I've never had any issues repotting any of my other Phals in early spike. Just be gentle with the roots and it's better to leave dead roots on than accidentally cut live ones. Maybe wait for a second opinion too since I don't have experience with this species.

camille1585 · #3 02-18-2019, 02:52 AM

In general Phals are pretty tolerant of repotting, at any time, unlike some other orchids. The only real danger of repotting spiking or blooming orchids is snapping the spike/blooms!

Generally, no matter what sort of orchid it is, if you have doubts about the medium it's always good practice to repot. It's better to risk losing the blooms rather than risk losing the entire plant. A happy healthy plant will bloom again later!

OrchideeNormus · #4 02-18-2019, 10:52 AM

I have that exact phal, I did repot it while it was in spike with no negative effects so far. It's been since January. It came to me packed very tightly into sphagnum moss, I don't do well with moss so into LECA it went lol. The spike is tiny on mine so I wasn't too worried about breaking it, and with my experience as far as repotting any orchid in spike or bloom, breaking the spike is always my biggest concern. If the spike had buds formed I might be worried about bud blast, but it's still a risk I personally take when I first get an orchid. Especially when I'm unsure of or don't like the media it's in.
If you're anxious to repot, go for it! Just be careful to not break those lovely spikes 😉 Good luck!

Nexogen · #5 02-18-2019, 12:42 PM

My point is to enjoy flowers. I do not know how much experience you have, but a plant that has been changed from a habitat is stressed and you have to protect it. I think it's best to cut the pot and leave it in the same media, but in a pot with a lot of air like net pot. After it ends with the flowers you can massacre it.
By the way, forget about LECA. Phalaenopsis bellina It is a plant with warm thermal requirements; the recommended temperatures are 24-26 ° C during the day and 19-20 ° C during the night. In the summer they can be even higher.

Vasilisa · #6 02-18-2019, 09:15 PM

Aliceinwl, Camille, OrchideeNormus, Nexogen

very much for your advice. I appreciate it a lot. I've had Phals only for 2.5 years. I'm not so experienced. Thank God, I've not killed any. Yet I managed to damage the roots with H2O2 during the repotting process after listening to a popular orchid youtuber. I've learned the hard way. The Bellina Phal is a different "animal" for me. I agree with Nexogen that a plant that has been changed from a habitat is stressed. Three months ago I bought/rescued a mini Phal from Lowe's. It just was left to die. The plant was done with blooming and it was absolutely healthy. I repotted it immediately without damaging anything. It took it 3 months to show the first signs of "orchid activities". It started branching and growing new roots. I think the plant was recovering slowly from the stress. I'll repot my Bellina when it is done with blooming.

Nexogen · #7 02-18-2019, 10:38 PM

You chose a very temperamental plant.
I do not think you'll see flowers from her soon.
Cross your fingers and hope yours keeps growing!

Vasilisa · #8 02-19-2019, 01:07 AM

To be honest, I have no idea what I'm dealing with. She is my first Bellina. As I understand, it should bloom in the summer and fall. Since this girl is "temperamental", I don't want to disturb it now even though I don't like the media and the pot. I'll patiently wait until the fall.

camille1585 · #9 02-19-2019, 02:37 PM

I know I'm repeating myself, but if you have doubts about the medium, repot it now. A lot can change between now and fall, and repotting as we are about to get into the growing season makes more sense than waiting until peak season is ending.

I would at the very least get it out of that flimsy plastic pot (I'm betting it has just a single hole below) and set it into something that allows for better air flow. Be careful about overwatering if you do keep in in the current medium. It looks like tightly packed sphag, and while it is an excellent way to grow orchids in a commercial greenhouse environment, in a home environment it can be tricky to get the watering right.

I don't know what other Phals you have, but bellina tends to be more picky in order to bloom (they love warm and humid conditions), and usually needs more light than the average Phal.

Vasilisa · #10 02-19-2019, 04:47 PM

Camille, you are absolutely right that the sphag is tightly packed and the pot has a single hole. The pot and the media drive me crazy. I am so anxious to repot it. Maybe I'll take a risk. I buy all my pots and media from Repotme. I usually buy Phalaenopsis Monterey Gold Imperial Orchid Mix from them. Will this media work for Bellina?
There is another thing that bothers me. It is green algae. Do Phalaenopsis orchids and algae have a symbiotic relationship or compete for minerals etc?

In my small collection there are only Phalaenopsis orchids. I have Phal. Surf Song, Phal. Little Gem Stripes, Phal NOID from Homedepot, mini Phal NOID from Trader Joe's, mini Phal NOID from Lowe's, Phal Ox Rainbow (rescued, crown rot), and Phal. Bellina.