Should I RePot a Mini Phal With Blooms?

[Audrey_C1]

This is my second orchid, and I purchased it before I found this forum, or knowing I was supposed to look at the roots before buying.

I've had it for about two weeks, and I've lost a couple of blooms that dried up before the flower opened.

I haven't repotted it, because I thought I should wait until all of the blooms died. After reading several threads here, I'm not so sure on what to do.

Should I re-pot this mini phal now, or wait until later

Here are some pics of what it looks like now. Thx!

[Ron]

Hi Audrey.
Very nice plant, I would not bother to repot it yet.
It would not hurt if you did repott it, just watch your watering with the spag moss.
I never use spag moss as I find under my cooler conditions it holds too much water, gets too cold and I loses the roots.
I also love using clear pots, see photo of a plant six months after repotting.
I use 12 to 18 mm Coc co nuggets only in my mix.
Soaked well before using.
Best of luck
Ron

[davetheorchidaddict]

A few years ago a neighbor had received a Phal for her birthday and was pampering it. She knew that I raised orchids and proudly told me she had a 'bloom spike' coming out. After about three months no buds had appeared so they ask me to look at it, when I got there I saw this nice long root staked up and I told them that was not a bloom spike it was a root. Her husband knew everything and told her to keep it staked up because he knew I was wrong - for all I know she still has that root staked waiting for it to bloom.

[mehitabel]

LOL, Dave. I have a theory that the stubbornest people are often the least swift. They try to use obstinacy as a cover-up.

I agree with Ron-- it's a nice plant (and very interesting blooms, BTW). It could stand to be left alone. If you start to lose flowers or leaves at a rate you think is too fast, you might want to repot then.

Lots of people here repot all their new phals, but it's not compulsory

[orchidlover55]

I agree with the other geeks, it could be left alone. It does have drainage doesn't it? Sometimes them little pots they put them in doesn't have drainage. It it doesn't have drainage then I would say repot it. Then you can put it in a nice orchid pot but make sure you soak your orchid mix 24 hours before you plant it in it. Let us know if you are going to repot it and we will guide you through it. It is a beautiful orchid I love the colors

[koshki]

Hi Audrey,

I have recently purchased several orchids (both dens and phals) in exactly the same pots as you show here. I have repotted all of them, primarily because there are no drainage holes in the pots, but also because I have had bad luck with plants in moss. One den was in bud, and it has continued to bloom very nicely. The most recent phal, also in bud, is opening just great...it barely noticed it was touched!

I used Mike's mix found here:

Phal Repotting & Media

All plants have survived the repotting without a hitch, and the phals are doing great. I found that the root systems were compromised, as they had been in the moss for quite a while, and some were pot-bound.

I discovered that the most recent phal I purchased was actually two plants in that same tiny pot. After it is done blooming, I plan on separating the two.

I can't say enough positive things about Mike's recipe. My invalid phal continues to do better and better, and it has developed a tremendous number of new roots, in addition to hydrating the leaves wonderfully. I would think that in your location it will work well for you, too.

Good luck!

PS, I second Ron's recommendation for the clear pots. It's so much fun to see what's going on, and it helps me with knowing when to water. I put extra holes in mine with the hot glue gun...it's so much fun!

[Audrey_C1]

This little pot does not have drainage.

The moss is somewhat tight, but I started using the skewer method today, to know when to water.

I guess I should re pot it.

Should I soak the plant in any kind of solution

[Dendian]

I am one of those who have learned to repot any plants I get from the "big box stores" immediately, because I have always found that they put too much moss and smother the roots, which always leads to root rot. And this is even with plants which do have drain holes! One without drain holes is always an immediate repot - no matter where I got it.

Check out the link for repotting a Phal http://www.orchidgeeks.com/forum/new...laenopsis.html , you will only need to use the hydrogen peroxide soak if you find your roots are rotten.

Some plants object to re-potting by dropping some blooms, some don't even notice.... But I say it is better to loose the blooms now than to loose the whole plant and all the future blooms....

[mehitabel]

Orchidlover is right, Audrey. No drainage = sure death. The skewer method won't help no drainage. Orchids need air at the roots. No air = roots rot.

Also, without air, that sphag has become a poisonous stew, full of old fertilizer salts that weren't flushed out, and that can kill roots all by themselves.

You *have to* repot *now*, while it's still healthy. I know it's a little scary,but there's an upside: phals put on about a three-month growth spurt after a repot. They love having fresh medium with the poisonous fertilizer salts removed.

Good instincts, Orchidlover. Who woulda thunk?

[lmartiny]

Hi Audrey. Tight wet moss is very difficult. The plants from the retail stores can have some iffy roots. I soak a bark mix and repot Phals into a clay orchid pot or a basket. They seem to be fine, even if in bloom. Even now I have some new dens and am hesitating because they are blooming. (plus time to get around to it) but I know they need to be done.

[shaz]

in general I find it's always the mini phals that will give me problems when I first get them, they are the ones most likely to die on me - often the medium is horrible and smelly, so I always repot them when I get them, the blooms never suffer.

For everything else I wait till flowering has finished then repot.

Are the minis produced in a different way is it becasue it's the minis that you find in the supermarkets so are cheaply produced I don't know and would be interested to hear what others think

[0r-kid]

I don't have anything help ways to add, but I do want to tell you how beautiful I think your blooms are. What a lucky chance to get that one at your store. I've been looking at some of the plants Lowe's has in those same pots, but haven't found any as interesting as that one!

[Audrey_C1]

Update:

I did re pot the mini phal and was surprised by what I saw. The roots were still doing ok!

I'm glad I listened to everyone, and re potted since there was no drainage. I did find a couple of roots that were starting to rot. They were all wrapped around each other, and the moss was very tight.

There were a ton of good roots though, and the pot I made worked very well for the size of the roots. I added plenty of styrofoam to the bottom of the pot so that the roots wouldn't have too much medium. I tried the mix that was recommended and it was supper easy to to. Thanks for the very helpful links!

After the repot, the phal started to open its last bloom, and it's as pretty as ever!

Again, thanks for all of the usefull info for re potting.

[koshki]

Nice job!

What did you use for the pot?

[Audrey_C1]

I used a clear plastic jar we had in the kitchen. I washed it with bleach/water first, and then made a whole bunch of holes in it with a hot glue gun.

I tried to buy a clear pot, but couldn't find one anywhere locally, and those who did have some clear pots only had huge ones. This one seems to have worked well.

[koshki]

I like using clear pots the best. It's easier for me to tell when to water, and it's fun to see the roots grow. I bought a variety pack from RePotMe.com, but used up all the small ones right away.

I'll start saving some plastic jars now! Good idea!

[syndywindy]

Nice job repotting! And the blooms are really beautiful.

[mehitabel]

Originally Posted by shaz

in general I find it's always the mini phals that will give me problems when I first get them, they are the ones most likely to die on me ... Are the minis produced in a different way is it becasue it's the minis that you find in the supermarkets so are cheaply produced I don't know and would be interested to hear what others think

Minis have a different set of species in their ancestry. They are also sometimes small plants as well as small blooms. Not always, but sometimes. They may also bloom at a younger age, so the plant you are getting is less mature.

I find small plants harder to grow than the larger ones-- the leeway you have in pot size, medium and watering is less with smaller plants, I think. The wider the range of circumstances a plant can tolerate, the easier it will be to grow. It would also be much easier to let a small pot get too dry -- they need much more careful watering, because too dry rots roots, too. Also easy to overfertilize a smaller pot or fill it with old fertilizer salts. Just more care needed all around.

[shaz]

good re-pot, looks like a lovely plant!

and thankyou mehitabel - that's very interesting, I've been wondering for a while now about the mini phals but it's one of those questions that feels silly asking