Best medium for Oncidium?

[Olive Cook]

my Mom just bought me my first onc. (wonderful woman!!)
it's the Sharry Baby, currently potted in moss... and I HATE moss.
I use bark for my Phals and Dens, but I'm not sure what is best for oncidium

I'm looking into LECA, as it seems to do great for most...

Any and all advice is welcome and appreciated

thanks!

[Stitz]

LECA will work well for small Oncidiums such as Sharry Baby. I use it for two small Oncidium species. I'm pleased.

--Stitz--

[Olive Cook]

great, thanks for the advice.
However, the plant will be here before the LECA, and I don't want to leave it in the moss at all... will bark be ok until the LECA gets here?

[Choodles]

I'd be more worried about repotting it twice than I would be about what media it went into- the plant would likely do best if it could wait to be transplanted into it's permanent home (ie a pot with the LECA in it). I especially wouldn't do the temp potting with bark if the plant isn't actively producing roots or new growths. Hopefully the LECA gets there quickly.

[SamIAm]

hello,
i have an oncidium, but not a sharry baby. mine also was bought with moss as the medium and has done great. oncidiums love water! they like a moisture retentive mix such as moss, chc etc. if they are underwatered the leaves will grow in accordian shaped, so you want to make sure your pbulbs are nice and plump. i would not use bark alone since it is not good at retaining moisture. the easiest way to water sphagnum is from the bottom, let the plant soak up what it needs. when i no longer see the water level dropping, i hold the pot at an angle to let any excess drain and place it back in its spot. sphagnum is a great medium and easy to use, makes me wonder why so many have such a difficult time with it.

[Olive Cook]

every time I've ever used sphagnum I've ended up with root rot, no matter how little I water Which is why I've switched to drier mediums... even if that means I have to water some more than others.
I'm a stay at home mom, so the only things I have to worry about is my son when he's awake, and the house work And my 'chids are part of the "house" routine...

[FLBob]

While I grow many of my oncidiums in sphagnum, I have a couple in other medium as an experiment. I have two in tree fern and they are doing well.

I currently have my Onc Sherry Baby in Dyna-Rok II. I've had it in the Dyna-Rok for about a year and I'm pleased with the results. The psudobulbs are plump and the plant has flowered twice.

Just as an aside... most people that fail with sphagnum attempt to water less and end up with root rot. What I've noticed is that they let surface become bone dry. Then when they water the root rot begins at the surface. Then the people that fail with sphagnum promulgate the notion that the problem is that the sphagnum needs to dry out to be successful.
I never let my sphagnum dry.