Packing Foam In My Roots!?!?

[cutesydancer]

HI everyone… Im new to this forum and not too experienced with orchids so I need your help I received a gorgeous purple Phalaenopsis as a gift. It came in a plastic pot so I removed it and placed it a clay pot (I treated it with bleach and then rinsed several times ) But I found that the roots had packing foam in the roots. I wasn’t sure if this was harmful to the plant or not and I was scared to untangle the roots. Can anyone give me some direction? Also I was wondering what the guidelines for potting are as far as size.
THANKS A MILLION!!!

[ryanjoe888]

as of my knowledge cutesydancer, styros are placed on the bottom of the medium mainly for the purpose of quick drain of water when you water it...it will lower the chances of root rot since roots on the bottom will not be sitting on water.it will not do harm on your phal... ;p

[norris]

Hi cutesydancer, and welcome I sometimes get plants with packing foam at the bottom also. When I repot, I try to untangle the roots and get all the old mix out, and then cut off any rotted roots. (New roots are white or greenish, and firm. Rotted roots are brown, and soft/mushy.) You want to then find a pot that is just large enough to hold the roots, as a pot too big tends to hold moisture too long. I usually soak my bark for a day before I repot, and then water the plant with Superthrive ( 1 drop / gallon water).

[jay]

Hello and welcome to the forum. Is this your first orchid or do you have others? Glad to have you hear now.

As for the foam peanuts, ryanjoe888 was right on. They are used to help provide adequate drainage. I actually rob deliveries of the foam peanuts for my plants.

Do you have a picture of your new Phal. We love to see pictures.

[kid a]

Hello, and welcome to the forum. Generally most orchids don't need to be repotted until they are growing over the edge of their pots or unless the medium (what it's potted in) is decaying or breaking down. If you use the search tool at the top of the screen and type in repotting you will come up with past threads full of great and useful information. I know there are also some video tutorials on you tube that show how to repot. As for clay vs. plastic pots that just depends on your environment and what works best for your plants. Plastic tends to hold more moisture, if you live in a dry part of the world plastic often works best; clay is porous and is used more in areas where roots stay to moist, for instance good if you have root rot issues and the medium isn't drying appropriately. Sometime this could also depend on the plant and what the plant prefer as far as root moisture. To give a good idea of where you are located can you go to the user cp button in the left hand corner of the screen and update it with your location. We can you the best advice that we know for your particular area as conditions and methods vary depending on where you live. I hope this helps! If you have any picture please post, we love pictures! If this is your first Phalenopsis or orchid try this link for a culture/care sheet: AOS | Phalaenopsis