Growing medium when repotting a Dendrobium Berry Oda - Orchid Board

bobloes · #1 03-05-2019, 08:27 AM

Hi All

Still in the beginners stage. Had some really good advice from this forum re feeding, watering and light conditions and my three orchids are doing 'well' - always some doubt due to the time it takes for things to happen. Thanks to all.

My berry ora has finished flowering and has lots of keikis so as it is at least two years old I have decided to repot it and remove the keikis and try to get some new plants established. It appears to be potted in what looks like soil rather than the bark like medium of my other ones.

Could you lovely people tell me what you think I should use for the old plant and the keikis?

Regards

Bob

Keithj · #2 03-05-2019, 03:59 PM

I will be repotting mine shortly and will be using a Westland- branded orchid mix. It’s a mixture of small - ~5mm - bark chips and Seramis clay pieces. The peaty media that many orchids arrive in has a nasty tendency to feel dry at the top but be sopping wet at the base of the pot, as I’ve just found on three Cymbidiums, which does the roots no good at all. For those I used the Orchid Focus mix but the bark chips in that are far too big for the roots on a Berry Oda. I know there are some good roots on this plant so I’m repotting sooner rather than later.

Mine has produced two keikis since I bought it but neither is big enough to be removed yet, though one won’t be long. I’m looking forward to watching it develop into a new plant.

Keith

fooferdoggie · #3 03-05-2019, 05:05 PM

I really like this bark it is supposed to last a very long time. it is on the spendy side but it lasts a long time.
Orchiata Premium Orchid Bark
Amazon.com : Orchiata Premium Orchid Bark 5 Litres - Power Plus 1/2'' - 3/4'' / Manufactures Packing : Garden & Outdoor

bobloes · #4 03-06-2019, 04:21 AM

Thanks to both. I bought a bag of the Westland mix when I repotted my pahiopedilium. Thanks for the suggestion fooferdoggie but transatlantic shipping costs.....
The reason I asked the question was because I thought I had read that this dendrobium is terrestrial not epythetic and as it came from a reputable orchid dealer he probably would have set it in the correct growing medium.
Any thoughts on that?
Cheers Bob

Keithj · #5 03-06-2019, 06:07 AM

Berry Oda is a hybrid but with a lot of Den. kingianum in it. That's a lithophyte, growing on stones rather than on trees, so it will have a more terrestrial-like habit but, from reading on the web, it seems to follow the usual pattern of needing a free-draining but moisture-retentive medium. Small bark with Seramis sounds like a fair starting point to me.

There are a lot of Berry Odas about at the moment so I would expect that, for the most part, they've been brought into the country as a batch and sold to distributors. Unless you're buying a plant that is of a considerable size so you're sure the dealer has had it for enough time to have repotted it I wouldn't assume that the medium any orchid arrives in is the right one for your growing conditions. I've read that the peaty composts work well in hotter climates where the superior water retention compensates for the increased evaporation but that isn't going to apply in a British Spring!

Keith

bobloes · #6 03-06-2019, 08:43 AM

THanks for that Keithj. I have had the plant since fathers day 2017 and it has just finished its first flowering in the original 'compost'. It was about 25cm height and spread and clearly had flowered before it got to me so I am guessing the dealer probably was doing it right. I think I shall pot it up using compost and a fair amount of grit and pot some of the keikis on using just the westland mix and some with a mixture of westland and compost. Maybe I will learn something from that. Would you advise putting it outside during the summer? I live in Weymouth. Cheers.

Keithj · #7 03-06-2019, 01:20 PM

To be honest, I don't know whether putting them outside would be good or bad. The difficulty is getting the light levels right so that the plants don't burn. That can happen very quickly. I had some of my plants outdoors last year over a weekend when we were away and they were given a bit of a pasting, though I didn't lose any. I'd say that you probably could providing you can give them enough shade from direct sunlight. The best bet would be to put them outside while you're around first of all so you get a feel for where the plants are best and have had time to be certain that a weekend away won't cost you dearly.

Keith

Pippa · #8 03-06-2019, 02:38 PM

Mine went out for a couple of months (August/September) last year and did well with shade from full sun.

Interesting to read the thoughts on repotting, as mine is going to need potting up a size as soon as it's finished flowering or it will be walking over the edge of its pot!

bobloes · #9 03-07-2019, 08:17 AM

I shall give it a go in the warmest months but I believe I will have to also protect from some of the winds as I am within 300 meters of the sea. Salt on the wind? Another consideration. You know working used to be easier as at least I knew what I was doing then!!!!!

Keithj · #10 03-07-2019, 01:20 PM

I repotted mine today and it has fantastic roots, even though the compost had a slight smell of mushrooms. There were dead roots, of course, but mostly in the centre - the oldest part of the plant. I found a couple of green nubbins as well so I have two keikis and, it looks like, two new growths.

Keith