How to get air roots out of the slits in pots

[Ray]

Cut the pot, not the roots!

[greenpassion]

Leave might, just trying to get a pair of scissors down through the side of the pot to get to the slip to cut it would have damaged quite a number of routes. And the slits were much tinier than the swollen roots that it pushed through. So she's now in a larger pot she looks great I saw no rotten roots When I did get her out of the pot. the genealogy of this phalaenopsis must be pretty tough. When she spikes and blooms I'll definitely send pics.

---------- Post added at 11:00 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:58 AM ----------

The ends of three smaller Roots were all that were cut.

[estación seca]

I've read Phal. Sogo Yukidan V3 is an extremely vigorous grower, so cutting a few roots shouldn't matter. I wouldn't do that to a plant with just a few roots.

[greenpassion]

No. Neither would I. Actually I don't want to ever do it to any orchid, but in this case it couldn't be helped. I think it will be okay though as you said.

[jkofferdahl]

I'm going to side with Ray here. In the case of a healthy, well-rooted Phal, cutting a few roots isn't an issue, but plastic pots are cheap, while healthy, well-grown orchids are valuable. In good part this is beacuse of my regard of good roots (which is why I'm now using Ray's KelpMax, as it happens). If you keep the plant's roots healthy and growing then your plant will be vigorous. If the plant is vigorous then it will have plenty of energy to produce blooms.

[Arizona Jeanie]

Just a thought, but---when my plants got a little larger, I switched to plastic baskets, the roots can get out easily and wave around a bit. It's dry here, so they don't go too far, and sometimes just settle down into the saucer. The medium dries well after watering, and there's plenty of air circulation. I have some of the baskets inside larger cache pots, but that doesn't seem to make any difference. Baskets from the local hydroponics store had a larger mesh with lots of room for the roots to go through but not the bark, plus they were quite a bit less expensive than the ones from the specialty orchid suppliers. When it's extra hot and dry, I can leave a little water in the saucer for those stray roots, without wetting all the bark. Plants are doing well, this seems to be working ok here.

[estación seca]

I've mentioned hydroponics stores before, but every gardener should visit at least once, and look at everything they carry. You'll be amazed. Of course, everybody there will think you grow cannabis in your closet, but who cares what other people think, right?

[greenpassion]

Ha! E.S, I used to as a matter of fact. I was very good at it needless to say. But it wasn't hydroponically.

[Arizona Jeanie]

The hydroponics store was very interesting, and the staff listened politely to my orchid questions, but it's not what they usually deal with. They did have a Phal on the desk in the office, and a Vanda in one of the automated hydroponic demo tanks--it looked OK but they said it never bloomed. They were very patient in explaining how the system worked, very interesting.
I'm waiting for my neighbors to turn me in, that grow light glow is distinctive. Only orchids underneath, though!

[Optimist]

Roots through the pots has kind of turned me off to the hydroponics type slotted basket. They go through and you have to cut a bigger hole, pretty much destroying the pot. I actually would rather use something like a "produce bag" like onions come in, inside of a larger pot.