The best homemade orchid flasking medium

[Mr. Tech]

Hello!

What kind of medium do you use for your mother flasks?

I'd like to flask some Vandas or Ascos and ready made medium (Sigma or others) are not available in my country.

So I have to make it on my own.

Last time I used the following:

2 litres of RO water
40 grams sugar
1 whole potato blended
Coco juice of 2 coconuts
Foliar fertilizer in the recommended dose (2 ml Wuxal Super)
18 grams agar
A bit of vinegar

It was an epic fail. I had no contamination at all but I got no plants.

I blame the seeds or the medium for it.

This time I want to try the flasking one more time with other seeds. Should I sow them in the flasks that remained clear or my recipe is the reason of my failure then I should prepare completely new flasks with different media? If I should make new media what would be the best compilation of them?

[BikerDoc5968]

While I have never done any flasking of my own, someday, if I live long enough to see flowers.... or plants, I'd like to... here is a recipe I found on another board that seems to be successful.

1 Liter of rain water (aprox. 4.2 cups)
300 grams of grated or blended potato with peel (aprox. 10.5 Oz)
25 grams of honey (Aprox. 0,85 Oz)
7-8 grams af Agar (Aprox. 0,25-0,3 Oz)
Citric acid for adjusting pH
Optional:
Orchid fertilizer same amount as you use when watering This should include micro nutrients!
A bit of banana

This is another formula from the same place.

1 Liter of rain water (aprox. 4.2 cups)
25 grams of honey (Aprox. 0,85 Oz)
Orchid fertilizer same amount as you use when watering This should include micro nutrients!
½ multi vitamin pill
7-8 grams af Agar (Aprox. 0,25-0,3 Oz)

The procedure is more or less the same as above:
1. Get water to boil
2. Stir in ingredients and let simmer for 2 mins.
3. Adjust pH using citric acid


Good luck and share with us your results... there are lots of us that are very interested!

[camille1585]

If you still want to use ready made media as a back up plan, OSP (Orchid Seed Project) in the USA will ship it abroad. I ordered some a bit over a year ago from them and shipping (to the Netherlands) was more than reasonable ($12) for a baggie each of germination (P669) and replate medium (OspEx 1.0). Shipping to you shouldn't be much more I think.

media

[Mr. Tech]

I don't plan ordering it because its expensivity.

[BikerDoc5968]

Just to add another idea.... do a search of this forum for "flasking media". There are a ton of threads and many with media instructions and DYI ideas, etc.

[roby]

Hi

My homemade orchid flasking medium
1 litres of RO water
20 grams sugar
1 gram charcoal
1.5 grams NPK 20-20-20
6 grams agar

optional:
Coco juice of 1 coconuts
or
pineapple juice 100 ml
or
5 drops NAA

I use this medium with:
phalanopsis
bletilla
sophronitis
epidendrum
masdevallia
restrepia
dendrobium
chysis

failed with
Cattleya
Aerangis
Spathoglottis

[svetozar123]

Please , can you explain what is agar ?

[estación seca]

Originally Posted by svetozar123

Please , can you explain what is agar ?

Welcome to the Orchid Board!

Agar is made from kelp that grows in the sea. When dissolved in water it forms a gel that is semi-solid at room temperature. It is used to make a soft, water-rich substrate for growing bacteria, fungi and orchids in warm conditions in a lab. Gelatin from animals would be liquid at these temperatures.

http://www.foodqualitynews.com/var/p...nm_gallery.jpg

It is also used in food, to make gels that are stiff at room temperature.

Here is an example of an Orchid Board member using it to grow orchid seedlings:

A seedling story!

[gdilorinzo]

Originally Posted by roby

Hi

My homemade orchid flasking medium
1 litres of RO water
20 grams sugar
1 gram charcoal
1.5 grams NPK 20-20-20
6 grams agar

optional:
Coco juice of 1 coconuts
or
pineapple juice 100 ml
or
5 drops NAA

I use this medium with:
phalanopsis
bletilla
sophronitis
epidendrum
masdevallia
restrepia
dendrobium
chysis

failed with
Cattleya
Aerangis
Spathoglottis

im curious as to why it failed with some of the orchids, I think that using a triple 20 might be too strong for the seedlings. Try adding MS basal medium + vitamins it comes in a small jar that is ready to mix in 1 liter. https://phytotechlab.com/murashige-s...1-g-l-mes.html

Edit* i compared mediums and apparently mediums high in salts will inhibit orchid seed germination. Pretty much MS basal medium is too strong. here is a link to phytotech's orchid seed sowing medium and what its made of. https://phytotechlab.com/media/docum.../P723-Info.pdf

[Mr. Tech]

Anyway, honey is a good idea to use it instead of sugar.

But using charcoal is a bad idea in my opinion because it tricks the litmus paper when checking pH.