Mounting Phals

[girishgkulkarni]

hi

I bought a Phal from a nursery 2 actually (both out of bloom)
Both already potted in a 6" clear pots..... Both have a lot of roots

I repotted it in the same pot after cleaning the roots an it fitted right back in snugly in the 6" pot ( I removed the styrofoam and it has only sphag in the pot.

Now this is the interesting part.
The other one is very big [gynormous.... would be the right word. the large leaf spans like bout 10 inches It has 5 such leaves. areal roots trying to move upwards and 1 is like a feet long. ]

I could not find a clear pot hence I came up with a idea.
I bought a 12" V shaped [conical] hanging basket lined with coconut husk lining from Home depot. I have tied [using a nylon string ] the giantic phal to one of the inner sides of the basket and coered all the roots in the cone with more sphag.

I will try to post a pic.

Waiting to see how this mounting turns out etc....

[mayres]

Just curious why you removed the styrofoam? Many of us use it religously to provide good air circulation and prevent excess water buildup in the bottom of pots. I've found the phal roots grow around and through it with no issues.
Do post a pic of your huge phal when you get the opportunity - looking forward to seeing your application - sounds interesting.

[E-Jag]

Keep an eye on the roots of both plants - unless you're experienced with sphag, it's difficult to guage when to water as it tends to hold moisture around the roots and promotes rot. I'm contemplating putting one of my phals in a wooden basket with bark just to see how it does compared to my others in pots. Good luck.

[girishgkulkarni]

Two of my smaller Phals are doing just great in Sphag only Medium. [one of them is beginning to bud out of an old spike which was cut in a way to simulate a second bloom.]

I get the sphag to completely dry out before the weekly shower [of the phals of course].

I observed that the Phal roots had actually dug in into the "S" shaped styrofoam packing material. There is no particular reason for removing the foam. Just wanted to make it all organic [I guess].

Is there a procedure to become a member?

[mayres]

Just keep doing what you're doing and you automatically ARE a member! WELCOME!
Don't forget that we all love to see pictures of your blooming orchids!

[solay]

Yes, welcome. Please post a pic. of your Phals. when you get a chance.

[girishgkulkarni]

finally.. after getting some tech issues fixed... I am posing a few pics

[PhalNewbie89]

That is a really neat mount. You guys mentioned sphag is a difficult medium. What do y ou recommend for newbies?

[Bird Song Farm]

Originally Posted by girishgkulkarni

finally.. after getting some tech issues fixed... I am posing a few pics

You've done a good job. However, you realize that the plant is mounted upside down?
Phals should be mounted with leaves down and roots up. You'll have to be extra careful not to get water in the crown this way....
Al

[digitalgate]

dont move the plant. Just change the mounting screw from bottom to top

[jerrymeola]

Go to our orchid Gallery and search on mounts for a lot of photos.

Here is a naturally mounted Phal.

The first thing to notice is that a very large heavy flower spike does not need support.



The second thing is that the Phal no longer needs to be kept in low light. Sunlight is not the problem with damaging orchids but rather the heat build up on the leaf killing the chlorophyll in the leaf. The side of the leaf facing the sun when grown naturally has no chlorophyll but the bottom side of the leaf is super sensitive, for a million years it has evolved to live with low levels of light bouncing off the forest floor. That side of the leaf is super sensitive. I can grow my Phals mounted right next to my Cattleya and Vanda.

You also no longer have crown rot issue since there is no crown to hold water. And aerial roots are no longer a problem since the roots naturally grow up and onto the mount.

Watering the plant is also easier. The sphag changes color dependng on the amount of water in it from dark brown to light brown (time to water) to hard white (time to soak it back to soft). It is almost impossible to overwater a mounted orchid.

[Brooke]

Why would a phal no longer need to be grown in low light if mounted? A leaf that can be sunburned in a pot can be sunburned on a mount. Growing something under heavy shade cloth is different than giving it natural unprotected sunlight for the same amount of time.

You will still have issues with crown rot IF the phal is of the type that grows straight up in a pot as opposed to being one that insists on growing over the edge of the pot. Even when mounted, a pulchra will orient their leaves to grow toward the light but a violacea will grow down. It is genetics that will decide how the phal grows, not how it is mounted. This is a not very good picture I have that shows the way the phal will reorient itself to the light and grow UP - it refuses to grow down. I have other phals showing this better and if needed, I can take pictures of them.



Here is a violacea and it will only grow down over the edge of a pot or on a mount -



There are two types of phal growth - one is very erect and one is the flop-py over the edge type and this is true in species or hybrids.

Aerial roots will grow up, maybe. I have some phal mounts with 10-12" of aerial roots hanging down off the mounts.

The mount pictured above hasn't been mounted very long. Sphag changes color as it ages. Yes it will change color in the beginning when you water but the light tan color disappears due to the watering and fertilizing.

Newly mounted phal -



Same mount a few months later -



You can over water a mount particularly in cool wet conditions. Just like a potted orchid, they must also be checked.

Brooke

[rcb]

Brooke - I completely agree with you. Some of my mounted Phal species do grown down, but quite a few will reorient themselves to grow up - my pulchra, stuartiana are two that even though I mounted them with the crowns down, as they grew new leaves they reoriented themselves so the crowns are now up. In a way this goes to show how robust these plants are - they "fix" themselves lol

[Brooke]

Yes Renee my stuartiana is one that reorients itself to having it's leaves grow up and my phillipinensis is another one. Even in warm weather I check at night to make sure the crowns of this type of phal has a dry crown. My pulchra totem I shake the water out of it before I hang it back up.

My stuartiana and phillipinensis are also the two phals with the massive amount of roots hanging straight down off their mounts.

The other thing I've discovered is the phals with the really long spikes still grow those spikes towards the light, just like a phal in a pot does. This was my favorite DUH moment this year -



The spike on this schilleriana grew soooooo fast it grew up, over and through the wire it hangs on. Next year as soon as the phals with the long spikes emerge, I will move them so the blooms are in front of the mount, not in back of them.

Brooke

[girishgkulkarni]

I like the idea letting the plant re-orient itself.....
I guess i 'll wait just to see how it tends to shape itself...

[frostychic]

Oh Brooke! I love, love-love that spotted leaf phal... is it actually a phal? Tell me more about it please so I can go in search of one... I so enjoy the leafs of my orchids nearly as much as the blooms so this one you've posted is making me go

Also... you mentioned floppy-over-the-edge phals vs. erect ones... seems I have 3 floppies and 2 erect jobbies... do those terms you used (violacea & pulchra) refer to the way the leafs grow or do those terms indicate more (like the size/shape of the bloom) or

I guess I'm confused about what those two words indicate... maybe I should go google

Thanks in advance!

[Brooke]

Frosty schilleriana, pulchra and violacea are all species phals.

If you are interested in phals with mottled foliage, besides the schilleriana, look for stuartiana and phillipinensis. The phillipinensis is probably my favorite foliage of the three but all are gorgeous.

Brooke

[Bird Song Farm]

Originally Posted by frostychic

Also... you mentioned floppy-over-the-edge phals vs. erect ones... seems I have 3 floppies and 2 erect jobbies... do those terms you used (violacea & pulchra) refer to the way the leafs grow or do those terms indicate more (like the size/shape of the bloom) or

I guess I'm confused about what those two words indicate... maybe I should go google

Thanks in advance!

Hi frostychic,
I'm sure Brooke just forgot this question so I'll jump in and she can correct me if I'm leading you astray.

Floppy leaf: The leaves on a mature plant are quite large and "flop" down over the edge of the pot. Sort of like draping a piece of fabric. The leaf(s) have sort of a 'wavey' look to them.

The erect leaf: just about what the term says..........the leaf is thicker, stronger and stands up and or out.
Hope this is of some help. Hard to explain but when you see them you'll know.

Al

[PhalPal]

It's beautiful!!! And sharing automatically makes you a Geek!

I would just keep it as is and water it as if it were in a pot, being careful not to let water sit in the crown.
Here is a link to the 'skewer method' that will help you determine when to water:

[PhalPal]

It's beautiful!!! And sharing automatically makes you a Geek!

I would just keep it as is and water it as if it were in a pot, being careful not to let water sit in the crown.
Here is a link to the 'skewer method' that will help you determine when to water: http://www.orchidgeeks.com/forum/orc...f-orchids.html