Rehabilitating bareroot Cattleyas?

[DavidCampen]

Next week I expect to be getting a shipment of a couple dozen Cattleya and Laelia species from Brazil via Miranda Orchids in Florida. By the time they get to me they will have been in transit for perhaps a week.

One question, I have not been using any rooting hormone when I repot but in those cases there are still significant roots. With bareroot orchids arriving from Brazil I expect that the roots will have been severely trimmed. Should I use a rooting hormone when I pot these and if so what types do people use?

I just noticed that I really should have put his in the potting&repotting thread. If a moderator sees this perhaps you could move this.

[WhiteRabbit]

I guess a rooting hormone product can't hurt. I got some plants with trimmed roots last summer, and I honestly can't remember if I used any - tho they definitely got a soak. These also were only a couple of days in transit. Most recently I have been using superthrive, only because I can get it locally - I honestly don't know if it makes a difference. I don't use it regularly, or have done any comparison. I'm sure others will chime in with advice! Good luck!

-I moved this to potting and repotting forum as you asked - but we aren't sticklers about such things

[tucker85]

I always use a product to stimulate roots when I repot. I use Maxicrop Liquid Seaweed but KLN, Kelpak, Dip N' Grow and many others work well also.

[james mickelso]

For most of my cattleya rescues I use Rootone mixed with the media in which I plant them. I have a very good track record with this product. Recently I have been reading FirstRays product info and have decided to try some. Rootone is a powder and won't mix in water very well so that is why I mix it in with the potting mix I use. I am currently experimenting with potting in spagnum moss loosely packed for the first few months or until I see new root formation. Here are a couple of pics of catt rescues where I used Rootone in the mix or mount. For the spagnum mount I used the rootone was mixed in with the moss then I wet it and applied it to the plant.

[DavidCampen]

Thank you everyone. I ordered some "Clonex Rooting Hormone Gel", it is 0.3% indolebutyric acid.

[james mickelso]

David, how are the new orchids and have you used the rooting paste yet? How did you like it?

[DavidCampen]

I received my shipment from Miranda Orchids last Friday. I am very happy with the plants. As I expected, they all came bareroot. In fact, after I remove dead roots, there are very few roots remaining; again, as I expected.

The several bareroot plants I got from Miranda a month ago are now showing flushes of new roots, I didn't use the Clonex Rooting Hormone Gel with these. With the 20 plants I got last week I am using the Clonex gel. The clonex gel is convenient to use on these severely trimmed bareroot plants. Before potting I pour the gel from the bottle onto the rhizome and the few remaining roots and then use a cotton tipped swab to help distribute the gel. I hope to see a lot of new roots in a month or so.

So far I have potted about 12 of the 20 plants. The unpotted plants are kept on a wire shelf in the greenhouse with dampened sphagnum laying on the roots until I get to them. I got distracted last weekend with other tasks in the greenhouse and going to an orchid show in Santa Barbara.

[Call_Me_Bob]

sounds like your all nice and prepared for them! post some pictures for us!

[james mickelso]

Oh sure!! Sure!! Go to SB and don't invite your friends!! How was it? Same stuff? I go in the spring and get some of the yearlings for $7. Always have some exotics.

[DavidCampen]

I just finished potting the bareroots that I got last week from Mirand Orchids. Here is a photo of most of them along with some Catasetinae from Sunset Valley.

Now to start on repotting the plants from Santa Barbara.

Kawamoto was there with a lot of nice hybrids - 3 for $24 or 3 for $40 for plants in spike. So we got 6 plants from them. Cal-Orchid was there and I got an Agraecum dideri from them.