Pot Material

[Bernie]

Is it better to plant phals in a clay or plastic pot?

[Sharyn]

Welcome to the forum Bernie. I prefer clear plastic pots for the phals. They're light weight, inexpensive and do not absorb salts. They also retain moisture. Since Phals don't like to dry out, you can easily see if there is still moisture in the pot.

You should update your profile in the user settings to include your geographical area. We like pictures, so post some when you can.

[Tobi]

Hi and welcome to the forum Bernie. I also prefer plastic pots as well. The clay
pots allow the medium to dry out more quickly and unless you're inclined to
overwatering, then plastic is the way to go. Also as Sharyn mentioned, clay
pots tend to accumulate salts in the walls which can lend to root burn.

[pikevi]

Even though I prefer clay pots for aesthetic reasons I will have to agree with Sharyn.

In addition to the reasons given by her I'd also add that ,because of translucence, it allows one to inspect the roots to ascertain the rate of growth or how healthy are the orchids.

I do have a compromise now. I just place the plastic pots inside the clay pots. It is, however, hard to find the right size clay pots to let the plastic pots snugly fit inside them

[jerrymeola]

I prefer clay pots with hydroponic pellets in a saucer for my personal plants and plastic in sphagnum moss for my commercial plants.

It depends on how often you are going to water and if you have the patience to wait until they really need more water.

[tizzycat]

I prefer the clear plastic pots and read somewhere recently that they help prevent the growth of algae around roots. (???)

Oh! sorry forgot to say welcome.

[tom499]

clay pots are good for orchids which like to keep their roots cool like disa's.

[mayres]

You can readily see that the word "better" is going to be a subjective one. You may know that phals grow naturally outdoors attached to tree bark - in other words - with NO pot. Pots are for the benefit of mankind - in order to contain them and be able to move them around for our own enjoyment. Depending upon your culture techniques and where you live you may find one type of pot and media better than another. I am finding for phals that the clear plastic pots tend to do a better job of containing the roots - they are less inclined to go wandering outside - looking for "bark" to attach to. Enjoy! Mike

[pikevi]

One of the reasons (not the main one) I began using clay pots was that they allow 'breathing'. It may or may not be of much use to the roots.

I think the best thing about plastic pots is that one can see the warning signs a lot earlier by looking at the root system.

[kmarch]

I used to use clay pots but stopped because roots stick to the sides of clay pots and get damaged during repotting. That doesn't happen with plastic pots.