Read it somewhere....

[Sassismom]

...but now can't find it, I'd like the recipe for the Coir medium mix please. I have my coir, now what else goes with it, and can I plant any orchids in this mix or only certain ones?

Oh you guys are going to tire of me very soon I think

So many questions so little time, and I'm not really sure where to put which questions.

[norris]

There is a Thread titled 'Phal Repotting & Media' where you can get some ideas, eventually you will want to create a mix that works best for your particular growing conditions. For instance, I'm in southern CA, and it is quite warm and dry here, so I added just a bit more core to the basic mix to hold more moisture. Have fun

[Hummer344]

After many sucess and failures I have developed my own mix. A handfull of this & that, mixed with a generous serving of bark and coconut husk and dyna-roc. If it needs more moisture I use a fine mix, if the plant doesn't need a lot of water I use a medium mix. Real helpfull uh. My basics are, comercial orchid bark & coconut husk chips. I throw in some charcole, dyna-roc(its like other hydroponic mixes) or perlite. If I am doing a phal I might throw in a few bits of sphag but not much. I am not a believer in sphag as it usually causes more problems for me then its worth. Mainly rot.

I get the orchid bark at the nearby hardware store in addition to the Perlite and charcole. but have to order the dyna-roc and coconut chips. I have read in other posts that you have a hard time finding mixes. It may be easier to make a one time bulk mail order, depending on your storage space, of things that you deem essential for a mix. Expensive, to say the least, but you will have the stuff around when you need it. You can get hydroponic stuff & coconut chips & coir on line from several different vendors. Same with hydroponic supplies. I use Dnya-roc and you can go to them at dyna-gro.com

[Sassismom]

Ok thanks.

[BillC]

Hi Cheryl, the origin of the coir based medium was a post by Mike Mayres, and I think if you look on the link you can read the whole thing.

Bill

Phal Repotting & Media

[Sassismom]

Thanks Norris & Bill, I did go to that thread, yes that was it. My mind gets boggled with all the information and all my questions, I guess I should write everything down in a notebook as I get answers for my question.

I'm going to do that now, find all my posts and write all the great responses I've gotten in a little notebook for future reference

[missann]

I personally use 10 pts coir, 10 pts pearlite, 2 pts rough coconut husk fiber (to increase drainage) and 2 pts charcoal. I am too afraid of using something too wet, even though I live in very dry conditions because I know the easiest way to kill an orchid is to rot the roots. If you are like me on that sentiment, you can use my recipe, although Mayres has the greenes thumb in the world and seems to know exactly what he is doing. I, on the other hand, do not, so I like to have a mix more on the dry side.

[katrina]

Hey Sassismom!! I'm with you...sooooo many questions...so little time...and such a boggled mine. At least the mind part is accurate for me.

I'll tell you...I've been doing like you - keeping info -- but I hate writing everything down so I've been printing the most pertinent threads out and organize them into a binder. There's a link at the top of each thread that lets you put it in printable format. Really cool!

[Sassismom]

Thanks for the tip Katrina, that's agreat idea.

[patticake]

Originally Posted by Sassismom

Thanks Norris & Bill, I did go to that thread, yes that was it. My mind gets boggled with all the information and all my questions, I guess I should write everything down in a notebook as I get answers for my question.

I'm going to do that now, find all my posts and write all the great responses I've gotten in a little notebook for future reference

Cheryl, If you go to your "page"-(click on your name-anywhere) You'll see a tab for "statistics" Click on that, and you can find all your posts and all your threads right there! It's a cyber-notebook!

[PhalPal]

Sassi I so agree with all of the 'Geeks above when it comes to discovering a mix that works for you. Mike and I use the same ingredients in our coir mixes but in different proportions. He lives in a wet, humid area and I live in a hot, dry area and we have tweeked our mix to accommodate our watering habits. You can ask 100 different growers what mix they use and you will get 100 different answers. Chances are good most of the 100 are successful with what they use. Theoretically, the mix shouldn't matter if your waterings habits are adjusted to match the mix and your climate. Try Mike's mix to the letter for a year, use the skewer method, and adjust ingredients in a year if there is a need to. You are more the determining factor in your orchid's health than which mix you choose.