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Tips & Care: Basic Tools and Equipment for Orchids (Part 3: Mounts)

MOUNTS:

Although most orchids may be successfully grown in pots, certain species prefer to be mounted on a substrate more closely resembling the one they would grow on in nature.  The basic requirements of a mounting material are much the same as a potting material;  it must drain perfectly and not decompose rapidly.

The most commonly available mounting materials are slabs or logs of tree fern, cork bark or cypress.

Occasionally, one can find pieces of Florida buttonwood or other hardwoods that make good mounting materials.  Tree fern is the most moisture-retentive of the three and may also be found carved into decorative shapes and totems.  These materials may be purchased in large sizes and sawed to meet individual requirements or purchased in assorted sizes.

Any hardwood that is non resinous and does not decay rapidly can probably be used for mounting orchids.  Inquire locally to see what local materials other growers might use.  When using tree fern mounts, be sure to orient them so that the fibers are going up and down in order to provide proper drainage.

BASKETS:

A very convenient way to grow orchids is to use baskets.  Often, the plant won't need to be repotted until the basket deteriorates.  If the plant begins to outgrow its home, it can simply be placed, basket and all, in a larger basket.  These containers because of their open nature, also have the advantage of being better able to meet epiphytic orchids' drainage and root aeration requirements.  Some orchids, notably those in the Vanda group, prefer to be grown in baskets because of their rambling aerial roots.  Indeed, most growers in subtropical areas of Florida and the Gulf States use no medium at all when growing vandaceous plants in baskets.  

Wire or plastic baskets are available, but wooden baskets are the most commonly used.  They range in size from 4 to 16 inches (10-40 cms) and are usually sqaure but can be hexagonal.  Cedar and teak are the most common woods and cypress baskets are available from time to time.

Teak baskets tend to last longer and consequently are more expensive.  when using a fine potting medium in a basket, like it first with an old piece of fiberglass windown screen, sphagnum moss , or coconut fiber to keep the medium from falling out.  For more info check the Part 2 of this series

The main disadvantage of baskets is that they must be hung.  also, the display of blooming plants is not as easy as with a pot.  Wide-ranging roots may also be a problem, preventing easy placement in containers for the home.

WIRE PRODUCTS:

Wire is used to fasten, secure, stabilize, and hang orchids.  Although it is easy to make your own, it is more convenient to buy premade wire products.  Rhizome clips are the most straightforward way to stabilize a newly potted sympodial orchid.  Styles are available for both plastic and clay pots.  You have passed the potting test when you can secure a mature cattleya with one properly placed rhizome clip.  

Occasionally, a tall plant needs a little extra support.  The grower can use a straight stake that fastens to the edge of the pot for this purpose.

A ring stake, or hoop, will help contain an unruly orchid as well as provide support.  Single and double pot hangers in an assortment of lengths allow you to place a pot almost anywhere.  Many growers hang their whole collection using "s" hooks of varying lengths to achieve intermediate heights.  Baskets are hung with three or four strands of light-gauge wire.  Fourteen or 17-gauge wire is useful for attaching plants to mounts or engineering a vanda into a basket.

STAKES:

Bamboo and other straight stakes may be inserted into the potting medium to provide additional support for a newly-potted orchid.  They are also used for setting a vandaceous plant into a basket.  Their primary use is to support the inflorescence of an orchid in a more attractive fashion as well as prevent its collapse or breakage.

TIES:

Like wire products, ties are essential ancillary items to orchid growing and potting.  Many growers like to tie pseudobulbs, together to make a neater arrangement when repotting.  Some may tie a plant to a support stake to add additional security.  Plants can be tied to mounts using almost any material including monofilament fishing line or old pantyhose cut into strips.  A basic selection of ties includes plastic ribbon tie, twist tie, bell wire, and perhaps, some monofilament or twine.

NAME TAGS:

Help eliminate namelss orchids; always use a name tag.  There are labels available in a style to suit almost any use, so keep a selection on hand.  Most are plastic; aluminum tags are available for extreme growing conditions or where permanency is desired.  Some provide spaces for bloom and repot information; some are available in colors so that you may code certain plants.  Most simply slip into the pot, while others tie on with wire or loops.

FUNGICIDE:

A wettable fungicide powder should be used to dress freshly cut plant parts.  This provides a barrier to infection until the orchid heals itself.  An inexpensive product such as Captan, Ferbam or Zineb can be made into a paste about the consistency of heavy cream and dabbed onto the cut part using disposable cotton swabs.

Some growers prefer to just dab a little of the powder onto freshly cut orchid tissue.  Fungicide can also be mixed in a quart hand sprayer according to label instructions and used for spraying seedlings or plants that have been bruised during unpotting.

Thanks a lot to Greg Allikas for his contribution on this post.Join Greg Allikas on Facebook

Tips & Care: Basic Tools and Equipment for Orchids (Part 2: Potting Media)

Potting Media:

Fir Bark:  

Today, sterilized fir bark is probably the most commonly used orchid potting material.  Its ease of use and comparatively low cost make it an excellent choice for growing orchids of most genera.  Sterilized fir bark comes from several species of western US trees including white fir and Douglas fir.  It is cleaned and graded before being offered for sale as a potting medium.  Fine grades are suitable for seedlings, whereas coarser grades (pieces up to 1 1/2 inches) (2-3cms) may be used for large pots.  As with other materials, fir bark may be enhanced with additives, such as perlite, charcoal, aggregates, or redwood chips.  These are often sold as proprietary bagged mixes.

Potting orchids with fir bark is easier than potting in most other media; the relatively uniform pieces readily fall into place among the orchid roots.  Because fir barck may be resistant to water at first, many growers prefer to soak it before use.  This also serves to remove some of the dust generated in shipping, which will sink to the bottom.

Bacteria that feed on the bark and bring about its eventual decay use considerable availabe nitrogen, which may leave orchids nutritionally deficient. Therefore, it is necessary to use a high nitrogen fertilizer, such as 30-10-10 for orchids grown in fir bark.

In a controlled environment, fir bark may last two years in a pot.  It has a tendency to break down much quicker in warm subtropical conditions and therefore is not used in these areas as frequently as tree fern or aggregates.

Tree Fern: 

Also known by its Hawaiian name Hapuu, it is the fibrous trunk of various species of tropical tree ferns.  It is available as logs, slabs, or other solid shapes that may be used to mount orchids directly.  It is also available in shredded form in several grades of coarseness.  Chunks of tree fern may also be found at times and they are useful for larger pots and specimen plants.  Fine tree fern may be used alone or mixed with other ingredients for compost and seedlings.

Tree fern has excellent properties as an orchid potting medium; it is easy to use and provides good drainage and aeration to roots.  However, growers with tender hands may want to use gloves when potting with tree fern, because it can be abrasive.  It provides minimal nutrition to plants and lasts about two years under normal growing conditions.

Occasionally, tree fern is mixed with additives such as redwood bark, which is thought to discourage snow mold.  Coarse aggregates can also be mixed in to "stretch" the tree fern and improve drainage.  Orchids grown in tree fern are best fertilized with a balanced fertilizer, i.e. 20-20-20.

Aggregates:

The term aggregates refers to non-organic media such as lava rock and gravel. For the sake of convenience, we include expanded mineral products such as Aliflor and Solite as well as mined products such as Australian diatomite.  Like other potting media, these materials are available graded by size, with the smaller sizes being used for specimen plants and large pots.  The larger sizes are also useful as drainage for other potting media.  

Being inorganic, these materials do not break down and are ideally suited for warm climates and outdoor growing in rainy areas.  Heavier aggregates, in concert with clay pots, can provide the firm footing needed by top-heavy orchids in windy tropical areas.  Their quick drainage also allows orchids to withstand considerable rain during wet summer months.

Aggregates are easy to use; the uniform pieces readily fall into place among the orchid roots.  Keep in mind that large pots tend to get heavy, especially if the pot is clay.  Although Solite is reported to hold up to 30% of its weight in water, these materials generally require more frequent watering than organic media.  As with other media, additives such as sphagnum may be used to modify the moisture holding properties.  Aggregates provide excellent drainage and aeration to orchid root systems and will last indefinitely. Although they can be reused, this is not advisable unless the used media can be sterilized.

Complete nutrition must be supplied when potting with aggregates;  use a balanced fertilizer such as 20-20-20. It is also recommended to thoroughly flush potted orchids with clean water monthly to avoid fertilizer salts from building up.  Many growers like to prerinse their medium prior to use to remove dust and fine debris.

Sphagnum moss:

This has become increasingly popular as an orchid potting medium in recent years, particularly with the introduction of high-quality, long fibered New Zealand sphagnum.  Comparable quality is also available from select Chilean sources.  There are different grades of sphagnum available from locations throughout the world;  choose the one that fits your budget and quality requirements.

Sphagnum is easy to pot with; however, you should presoak it overnight in a bucket of warm water.  Many growers like to add a teaspoon of an algicide such as Physan or RD-20.  Squeeze it out gently before packing it around the roots, taking care to not pack too tightly.  A rhizome clip or stake may be used to stabilize the orchid.

Sphagnum moss is difficult to rewet once it has dried out so it is best to keep the plants evenly moist but not soaking!!!  Adjust your watering schedule accordingly.  As a result, this medium is not for orchids that like to dry thoroughly between waterings.

Although it is thought that the moss supplies some minor nutrition, it is best to fertilize plants potted in sphagnum with a balanced fertilizer such as 20-20-20.  Additives such as charcoal and perlite are often used to prevent the moss from compacting and keep the mix open.  Sphagnum can last up to two years but in practice, plants are usually repotted yearly, especially phals.

The moss can harbor the fungus that causes the lymph infection Sporotrichosis.  Although cases of infection are not especially common among orchid growers, the fungus can enter the body though a cut or other opening and cause symptoms from mild to severe.  As a precaution, wear rubber gloves when working with sphagnum moss.

Osmunda:

Until the early 1950's, osmuda was the potting media used for growing orchids.  Its increasing scarcity and consequently high price has caused it to fall out of favor.  It also requires some skill to be able to successfully pot with osmunda.  Other potting materials available today are much easier to use.  There are certain instances when this medium might be just what is called for to coax a recalcitrant orchid into growth. It is also useful to put a small pad of osmunda beneath the rhizone when attaching a plant to a mount; this provides a little extra moisture while the plant gets established.

The fibrous roots of the osmunda fern provide a higher quantity of nutrients than most other potting materials, therefore they require more dilute fertilizer application.  Use one-half the strength used for other media.  Despite the fine texture of osmunda, it does not break down quickly and will generally last in excess of two years.  Additives such as charcoal can be used to maintain the openness of the mix and keep it from souring.

Potting with osmunda requires some practice; chunks are torn into appropriately sized pieces and forced into the pot and around the roots with a "potting stick" or similar tool (you can use a sushi chopstick), creating enough pressure against the roots to hold the orchid firmly firmly in place.  An orchid that has been properly potted in osmunda usually requires no clips or stakes unless it is top-heavy by nature.

Coconut husk chips (CHC):

Graded chips, or chunks of coconut husk have enjoyed some popularity as an orchid growing medium.  Indications are that it may offer better aeration and stay less wet than coconut fiber.  Some growers have had success using the fine grade on its own as a seedling medium.  It seems to provide a constant, even source of moisture without the dry to wet problems of sphagnum, yet does not stay soggy.  It is common practice with this medium to provide an overnight soaking prior to rinsing with water to leach out any accumulated salts that may be present on the coconut husk, depending on its source.  The chunks may be used on their own or mixed with charcoal, Aliflor or lava rock.

There are also many formulated potting mixes available at garden supply  stores that are suitable for growing a wide range of orchids.  We have not included those here because we do not endorse any particular proprietary potting mix and the types and availability vary regionally.

Thanks Ned Nash

Tips & Care: Basic Tools and Equipment for Orchids (Part 1: Pots)

Few expensive tools are needed for orchids, but growers will need to spend their time, (not their money) making sure they have the correct medium and container to match to the orchid.

POTS:

There are many types of pots available that are suited for the culture of orchids but the basic choice remains: clay or pastic.

Most clay orchid pots are terra-cotta and often have additional drainage either as holes or slots around the bottom edge of the pots.  There are several individuals offering clay orchid pots that are decorative as well as functional and you may find these worth investigating.

The basic characteristics of an orchid pot are that it is shallow in relation to it height and has addional holes for drainage and root aeration.  Plastic pots generally have the same features, but the plastic retains moisture longer than a porous clay pot.  Additionally, plastic pots require specific rhizome clips and stakes that don't always anchor as well as their clay counterparts.  In either case, it is important to choose the type of pot based upon your other cultural factors, such as average temperature, air movement, frequency of watering, and choice of potting medium as well as the genera being grown.

Generally, temperate growers who have greenhouses tend to prefer plastic pots and a moisture-retentive mix such as fir bark or sphagnum. Subtropical growers, whose plants are exposed to the elements, tend to use fast-draining media, such as the aggregates and clay pots.  Subtropical growers, who also often grow their plants outdoors or in areas exposed to the wind, find that clay pots give a weighted, bottom-heavy aspect that does not blow over as easily as plastic.

Both, clay and plastic pots are available in a wide range of sizes from 2 inches (5cms) up to 12inch (30cms) and larger.  Choose the appropriate size to allow for approximately two years' growth.

Drainage:

Whether or not to use additional drainage material in the bottom of orchid pots is a continuing debate.  Many growers advocate putting some sort of drainage material in the bottom, whereas others prefer to fill the whole pot with medium.  Although the choice is ultimately yours, most recommend that you use drainage.  The argument against additional drainage material is that it does not really serve any useful purpose, and that it only provides a good hiding place for pests such as slugs and snails.  If you regularly bait for these pests, this is not an issue.

The purpose of putting pieces of broken crock in the bottom of orchid pots is to prevent the medium from compacting and blocking the drainage holes.  It also serves the purpose of providing aeration to the interior of the pot where stagnant conditions easily develop.  Indeed, certain pot manufacturers have created pots with drainage built in as upside-down slotted cones.  This consideration is more critical as pot size increases and becomes imperative when growing specimen-size plants.  Without drainage, the center of the medium in a 12 inch pot can become very dank.

Any coarse, inert, inorganic material can be used as drainage. Broken clay pots (sterilized), styrofoam, and landscape lava rock are all good choices and are easily available.  Lighter materials can help reduce the weight of large specimen plants, while smooth river rock can add stability to a top-heavy phalaenopsis or dendrobium in a plastic pot.  The most important qualities are that the material is coarse enough to provide adequate air space and not break down in the pot.

To be continued...