A newly aquired phal in S/H?

[Phalcycle]

I recently received a phal as a gift, and it was a Noid, but I think I found an ID to it. Well, I saw that the roots tips were very healthy!
Green tips, air roots all over, and green roots could be seen throught the pot.

I have been reading up on this S/H method, and although I have no soruce to buy the supplies yet, I was wondering if it would be a good idea to translplant it already, orwait until the blooms die.

Also, Where is a good source for '[I]LECA[I]'?
I want a cheap source, and is it available in stores like Home Depot or Lowes (or stores simular)?
I don't like the price of shipping, and often enjoy a nice long car ride with my family =)

[kmarch]

If it's a phal hybrid without a tag it will be pretty much impossible to ID, especially if the phal is the white one pictured in your avatar. If it is a species it might be possible to ID it by comparing it's characteristics to those of a botanical description.

[PhalNewbie89]

I bought my leca from a store on amazon. 10 liters for about 22-23 dollars. Now I am dreaming up all the ways I can use it .. You just search hydroton on amazon and you can find it. I am thinking about putting a new phal into leca myself..

[Irene]

Check your local hydroponics shops for LECA.

[Dendian]

I have found LECA at hydroponics stores, look them up in the phone book. I have never seen them at Lowes or Home Depot. Yes, shipping is VERY expensive - its like buying heavy rocks....

Hydroponics stores will sometimes also have Physan 20, rooting hormone and other cool mad science ingredients.

The key to transplanting any plant is to look for the green growing tips - the longer the green tip, the faster its growing. You can wait until the blooms finish (be aware it might be months if the Phal likes it where it is).

I have not put any of my Phals in SH, but I have seen suggestions of using spagh around a main root into the resevoir to keep up the humidity until the roots adapt to the S/H.

As I tend to be on the dry side with my SH watering (I don't water but once a week), I don't think my Phals would like it. However, my Catts LOVE it!

[syndywindy]

I personally had no success with phal's in S/H and won't experiment with them again. I know some on the forum have had success with their phal's in it so it's a personal decision. I'm like Dian, my catt's love it as do most of my onc's. If you are in an urban area, there should be a hydroponics store somewhere in the area. I bought a huge bag for under $20. I would think to ship a large bag like I got would be very expensive.

[rschluss]

Phal- There are several shops in the Boston area to get hydroton. Do a google search for Hydroponics+yourzipcode. If you look on google maps using that, you will find them. Any hydroponic supply would carry LECA, fertilizer, and other orchid-related supplies.

[Phalcycle]

Okay thank you guys!
Yeah I figured the heavy rocks would make the shipping really expenisce so I'd rather drive myself

[tangers40]

if you can find it locally, it should be fairly cheap. i get my 10L bags for 10 bucks. and to me, the 10L bags are huge. i actually bought my first one and swore i'd never ever use the entire thing. i'm now well into my second bag, and will probably need a third soon . but like others suggested, check your local phone book or the internet for hydroponics stores. they're everywhere.

[-k-]

Originally Posted by tangers40

. i get my 10L bags for 10 bucks. and to me, the 10L bags are huge. i actually bought my first one and swore i'd never ever use the entire thing. i'm now well into my second bag, and will probably need a third soon .

Lol...
Just picked up a bag 10L for 10 bucks and literally as walking out of the store I said the very same thing, I'm never going to use all this. . . Well see what happens!