Soaked and rinsed!...now what?

[wgama]

I have soaked( for 24 hours) and rinsed my hydroton pellets( I know PrimeAgra is better but hydroton is all that is available) are they ready for me to pot my catts (which wont arrive tell tuesday) in them? ot do I have to do something else to them?

[Becca]

It should be good to go, but here is a link: LECA Preparation, make sure you've followed the instructions at the bottom of the page, especially if you have a few more days before the arrival of your catt's. Also, you will want to make sure you are repotting when they have new root growth, here is another link (http://www.firstrays.com/transplant_adaptation.htm) to help you understand this if you haven't had a chance to read up on it yet. Hope it helps!

[orchidsamore]

I have potted thousands of Cattleya in hydro pellets.

I do not think the various products work any better than any other. Ali Flor is the cheapest and irregularly shaped. Hydrothron is more expensive and uniformly round. It is also much cleaner in the bag than Ali Flor. PrimAgra I consider way too expensive for no extra benefit.

You need to wash the dirt off any of them, but it is not very important to soak for any length of time. Still the soaking can not hurt and if you have the time then go ahead. I never had the time and had no adverse results from using it dry.

A good trick to try when potting is an easy way to get the rocks around the roots.

All the hydro pellets float. Hold your plant where you want it to be located and pour hydro around it. Then take the entire pot and while holding the plant immerse the pot in a bucket of water until the pellets float to the edge of the pot. Shake it gently and remove. Often the pellets will settle considerably as the pellets moved in among the roots without the necessity of trying to force them in. Add more pellets and repeat until the pot is full.

[Ray]

Jerry,

I think you're being a bit myopic in your basis for opinion.

Down there in your growing conditions, almost anything will work fine, as the humidity doesn't compete as much with the wicking action. In places where the evaporation rate is much higher, there are definite differences in how the pellets perform - some wick faster, some wick slower. Some absorb more but don't release it well, while others do so with great efficiency - again, irrelevant in Fort Myers, but not everywhere.

And no, all of the pellets don't float.

[Becca]

I must add that my Prime Agra does not float when I water it. I have bought orchids potted in different LECA pellets and they float. I prefer for them not to float!

[wgama]

ok thanx! it turns out i bought a odontocidium today and it used up most of the LECA anyways!