Potting mistake???????????

[Willc73]

I am very new.
Most of the Phaeleonopsis I purchase here in Southern California are potted in Moss. After watering they stay wet for a week or more. I usually repot them into my wire wall hangers for my outside garden using all orchid mix which is mostly a bark. Those seem to dry out within a day, especially in the summer time when the temps get in the 90's. When I check to see if they need water I usually stick my finger in the bark to feel if its dry. I am always afraid of over watering and might tend to let them dry out too much.I also have Dendrobiums and cymbidium.
Side note: Two Phaleonopsis I just purchased are in clear containers they were non blooming although one had a spike. I put these outside , under bright shade. The leaves started to yellow, all of them. It looked like a blotchy yellowing of the leaves. The pots are clear and there is moisture. Could the heat and light have done this?

[jerrymeola]

Your experience with sphag vs bark is typical. Most commercial growers in S. Cal and Florida would use sphag so as to keep the Phals more moist.

I do not think you should have any problems with over watering in a wall basket and bark. Over watering is not an issue of water quantity but of how long the water stays on the roots and allows rot to develop.

I recently had a shipment of 1500 dendrobiums and Cattleyas sit in a bucket of water for up to three weeks before I potted them. I always keep them in a water bath (with SuperThrive rooting hormone) for at least an overnight before potting new plants.

We just recently had a deluge of water in our first small hurricane of the season and one day without water and the potted orchids are suffering from lack of water already.

I give these examples to show the quantity of water and soaking wet roots are not themselves a cause of root rot. Bacteria does not occur immediately and takes time to grow.

Most rot occurs when the medium is bad and the bacteria is growing actively. Then excess water never lets the medium dry out. Drying kills the bacteria which needs water to live. Bad medium never totally dries out without drying the plant too much.

Phals in general like to be a little moist all the time. It is not good to dry them completely too often.

As to your new two Phals, heat and light could have been a shock t the plants. You should always take your time putting new Phals outside, giving them time to get adjusted.

What size bark are you using? I use fine bark for the phals, which doesn't seem to stay that wet yet takes several days to dry and keeps the roots damp. I also mix in some sphagnum moss to retain added moisture.

[Willc73]

I use a medium size. I think it can have something to do with the warm summer we are having. The bark seems to dry quickly. If I touch closer to the roots it feels cool which should mean it is moist.
I have been doing some light readings. The brightest part of the day, it gets around 2000 foot candles and close to 100degrees farenheit. I don't think that should hurt the Phaleonopsis, but I could be wrong. The leaves didn't completely yellow however they have lightened in color with a blotchy look.

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

Blotchy? Did you use any oil on it like neem? Oil and heat don't mix. Cynthia, Prescott, AZ

There is a saying that you can't water orchids enough, but you can water them too often. Perhaps you might consider giving the plants much more water at the time that you do water. Really drench them. Bark is very hard to re-wet once it gets too dry. And the trick is to let the outside of the bark dry while not letting the central core of the bark totally dry out before you water again.

[atcrosby]

I am still trying to figure out the watering scheme for my orchids. Some are in bark while others I bought came in moss. The moss seems to last longer but the ones in bark are needing water much more often. I have discovered humidity in the room plays a big role as well. If it's 50% humidity, I have to water twice in the same week.

One thing Jerry stated was that the standarding water is the problem. If I have plants in new bark and the posts have slits up the side, can they be watered much more frequently without impact?

Although most seem to prefer bark, I think that moss may be better for the Phals and other orchids requiring moisture. If you use both, what is the mixture?

Thanks.

[jerrymeola]

All potting mediums work. Each has different characteristics that require different watering techniques. Bark dries faster than sphag but slower that hydroponic rocks. A mixture of each puts the results somewhere in the middle.

What you use should be determined by your watering habits not on a recommendation from someone else. Listen to what others are doing (that is one purpose of this forum) and chose what will work best for you. It will probably be a mixture of several.

You should standardize with one type for all your Phals (and I have them in all kinds of different conditions - do as I say not as I do) It just makes things easier. Mine are different because I do not have the time to change them and plants are rotating thought the shade house too often, they are not here to stay.

[Willc73]

very good advice. I will do that.

[I. C. Unicorns]

I just made a post concerning potting medium for my Phals. I found about 50-50 bark moss mix works great, maybe a little lighter on the moss.

[atcrosby]

Thanks.

I will experiment on the potting medium with my "rescue" orchids. Those are my orchids I bought from Lowes since they were abusing them but they had some viability and seem to be responding. I even got a flower off the miniature Phal !

Anyways, thanks again Jerry for the great advice.

[bertafly]

Originally Posted by Willc73

I am very new.
Most of the Phaeleonopsis I purchase here in Southern California are potted in Moss. After watering they stay wet for a week or more. I usually repot them into my wire wall hangers for my outside garden using all orchid mix which is mostly a bark. Those seem to dry out within a day, especially in the summer time when the temps get in the 90's. When I check to see if they need water I usually stick my finger in the bark to feel if its dry. I am always afraid of over watering and might tend to let them dry out too much.I also have Dendrobiums and cymbidium.
Side note: Two Phaleonopsis I just purchased are in clear containers they were non blooming although one had a spike. I put these outside , under bright shade. The leaves started to yellow, all of them. It looked like a blotchy yellowing of the leaves. The pots are clear and there is moisture. Could the heat and light have done this?

Hi I live in new mexico and am unable to put plants out side but I do know that some times it may be iron that your plants need if the yellow is happening and the change in temp. I like plastic pots better than clay.