My first mounting job
 

Wanted to mount my Amesiella monticola because the roots were rotting in the pot.

I have a crepe myrtle in my front yard, so I took a dead branch from that.

http://i.imgur.com/ZhmgBOP.jpg

Might need a thicker piece, though?

Looks good!

Nice job.

The piece of crepe myrtle looks ok for size, but is it a very hard, long-lasting wood? Are there any ruts, nooks, or crannies for the roots to work themselves in and around, or is it smooth?

Also, are the roots in direct contact with the mount with sphagnum over top, or is there a layer of sphagnum between the roots and the mount?

I always put a pad of sphag under the roots then usually a light layer over them since they are used to being potted. The new ones will be happy with where they grow. My only question is did you treat the wood in any way? I usually boil, bake or both before using "wild" wood.

Crepe myrtle is commonly recommended for mounts. This particular branch... it's not completely smooth, but it's not near as rough the one my Leptotes bicolor came with.

The sphagnum is between the mount and the roots. I did read that putting the sphagnum on top of the roots can make them stay moist for too long. Plus I had to wire the sphagnum on first and then put the orchid on, because it turns out it's really hard to get everything to stay in one place if you're trying to work with too much stuff at once.


Nah. I just used it straight from the tree. I figured it doesn't seem too different from putting potted plants outside (or people in warmer zones straight-up putting their orchids on trees).

Something you may want to try next time is using thing strips of nylon to attach the plant and sphag with. It works really well, is hard to see (if you use the nude ones) and does very little damage to the roots.