Ray, When you described sphagnum as "sour" what were you referring to?
Did you have in mind moss that is old and disintegrated or still in tact in
long
strands but super-absorbed with fertilizer salts and starting to get costic
or
actually smelling "sour". I don't throw away good sphagnum just because it
turns green and smells "earthy", because I buy good, five-star sphagnum
and when it starts to get dark green, which it will do with nitrogen
buildup,
it's useful life is far from over. I just put it in a large plastic bowl,
saturate it
with tap water, and squeeze out the water (and the old fertilizer salts)
with it.
As long as it is still in strands and has "loft", this technique works well
and
has lowered my sphagnum costs. I repot every plant I buy when I get it home
so I knows how old it is. The problem with old moss is twofold: it contains
too
much old fertilizer salt and it compacts too tightly.

Or
"Ray @ First Rays Orchids" wrote in message
...
I think that you remedied your first mistake - reusing the apparently sour
sphagnum.

All should be OK from here.

--

Ray Barkalow First Rays Orchids
http://www.firstrays.com
Secure Online Ordering & Lots of Free Info!


"Fran Kirby" wrote in message
news:bAg1a.39191$vm2.22318@rwcrnsc54...
I have a phal. that was bought potted in spaghnum with popcorn in the
bottom
of the pot. It was in bad condition and I had to remove most of the
roots
due to rotting. I repotted but kept the same planting medium. Since
then,
one leaf has yellowed and died and another one split and is wilted.
However
there is a new leaf coming up in the middle, so I have some hopes of its
recovery. After reading some of the recent posts on phals, I have
changed
the potting medium to the orchid mix I use for the rest of my plants and
also put it in an "orchid pot" with extra drainage. I am glad I checked
the
roots again-the remaining roots had also rotted-evidently it was kept
too
moist in the spaghnum. Any other hints for its health would be
appreciated.
TIA

--
Fran Kirby
Jacksonville, Florida