Maybe, maybe not. Some phals seem more "rooty" than others.

First, consider who you bought it from. In general, I've found that if
I get a phal from a reputable vendor, it generally does not need
immediate repotting. If it comes from Home Depot and vendors of that
ilk, it is often overdue for potting.

Second, look at the media. Spaghnam breaks down faster than bark. If
it's dark, it's broken down. Also, give the media a good
inspection--recently I bought a phal that was potted in spaghnam with
bark on top. A test to see whether the media is broken down: sniff the
media. If it smells bad, that's a clue that the media had broken down
and the plant needs repotting. Also, look at how the water flows out of
the pot when you flush the media--if it gushes out, chances are thtat
the media is okay, but if it dribbles out, the media is probably so
broken down that it is clogging the drain holes. Also, you might try
sticking a toothpick or wood shish-kabob skewer in one of the drain
holes--when you pull it out, look at what's sticking to the skewer--a
lot of fine, silty stuff is not a good sign.

If the plant is in spike or in bloom and you repot it, you will
probably lose the bloom or spike. One thing that I've done is with 50%
success is to take an in-spike plant out of broken-down media and,
instead of a real repotting, I throw out the bottom broken-down media
and replace it with fresh bark and then set the plant on top of the
fresh bark. Then, when the plant finishes blooming, I do a full-up
repotting and replace all of the media.

Whenever I've repotted a plant that has roots coming out of the bottom,
I always destroy the pot in favor of saving a healthy root.

BTW, a phal can look pretty healthy on top but have dying roots.



In article , John Carruthers
wrote:

The roots on my latest Phal are poking through the holes in the bottom
of the pot. Is this a hint that it needs re-potting ? Everything else
is fine, new leaves, spikes etc.
jc