Green Beginner Re-Pot

[oregon woodsmoke]

After months of beautiful flowers, my phals are dropping their flowers, so I am re-potting. This is what I am learning:

1. Bark floats.

I've been soaking when I water, but with the newly potted phals, the bark in the planting mix floats and disrupts the roots. So now, until the roots get established, I am top watering and it must be done a lot more frequently.

Marbles are round:

Not only round, but when purchased for the orchid pots to sit on, they roll like ball bearings. The pots go flying across them like they are on roller skates. So that didn't work. But what is working very nicely, is I am putting a layer of marbles inside the pot at the bottom. That is giving some nice weight to my pots so that they are not top heavy.

[estación seca]

Great observations!

New bark floats. Old bark sinks and suffocates roots. One way to tell when it might be time to repot.

[WaterWitchin]

Soak the bark prior to repotting. If already repotted, soak the pot overnight then go forward, letting them dry out for a bit.

I've lost many a marble myself....

[Carebear2]

I liked this observation with the smooth marbles.
Marbles in the bottom of the pot are great to add aeration but the pot will need more watering as Marbles won't hold any moisture and will increase ventilation in the pot.

Most people use clay balls to stick under their pots, they have a rough surface so no sliding about and increase humidity considerably more than marbles.
You can also use the clay balls at the bottom of the pot - they add aeration and can hold some more moisture too.

You have some good quality bark if it floats but yes is tricky to soak. This is where growers usually add a bit of loose spagnum moss on the top if the bark dries out too fast.

You want the most aeration you can provide but you don't want to be constantly watering so something to hold the moisture in the pot like moss can be beneficial.

[camille1585]

Soaking newly repotted plants can be tricky with all that loose bark floating around! To avoid it I usually fill the container for soaking so that the water level is about two thirds of the pot and I'll fill the container by top watering so that the top layer of bark gets good and wet as well. I'll leave the plant to soak at least an hour for the first couple months after repotting.

[Ray]

For future repotting, try this little trick: instead of soaking the bark before use, try pouring very hot or boiling water over it. No need to flood it, just trickle it over the pile until you wet it all. Wait 15-30 minutes and repeat.

The combination of heat and moisture will allow the bark structure to “open up” and absorb more liquid going forward.

[estación seca]

Or use something other than bark. I find LECA works at least as well, and doesn't break down.