Hi. I need to repot an orchid that is almost crawling out of its pot and was wondering does anyone had any good orchid compost recipes? I mix composts for all my other potted plants but apart from a lot of bark not sure what else an orchid needs.

I have seen orchids cultivated in bark, perlite, rock wool, moss, peat, expanded clay granules, expanded polystyrene foam granules, coconut husk, broken bricks, broken terracotta pots, perlag (a dense version of perlite), pumice, and granite (yes, granite), dried cow dung, and just plain air (vandas).

And you have to see the orchid roots growing on my aluminium benches and up brick walls!

In addition to that, I have heard of a practice of growing cymbidiums in fresh horse manure.

Some will have you believe that you can only grow orchids in one of the substrates above, while others will swear by a magic mix of these.

I believe that orchids don't actually care what the substrate is, as long as it is inert enough. It depends entirely on how you water them.

Weng

can I ask about the watering - how much how often?

Thanks! I will use bark chip as I have a bag of it. Would love to let it roam freely but not practical as I have it on a little shelf in a very little bathroom. Not sure what orchid I actually have. It was nearly dead when I bought it for next to nothing. All I know is that it is a dwarf that smells of chocolate.

Sounds like an Oncidium Sharry Baby 'Sweet Fragrance' to me ;-) If it is, the black spots on the leaves are characteristic. You cannot 'cure' that!

Suzie, wait till the compost at the base of the pot is almost dry. Try looking through the holes at the bottom. With practice, you should be able to judge by the weight of the pot. Unfortunately, the intervals will depend on the temperature and humidy, and how much water the plant is actually using. The compost holds varying amounts of water depending on its composition and size. Large pieces of compost will need watering much more often then little pieces. On top of that, as the bark decomposes, it will hold more water.

Sounds complicated, I know, but it really is not difficult. Happy growing.

Weng

There were no flowers on it when I bought it just a few scraggy brown leaves but life in the middle so i had to save it. When I Bought it that was all they could tell me about it and no, the leaves don't have any black spots. Could they develop as it grows and if it is Oncidium Sharry Baby 'Sweet Fragrance' what colour will the flowers be?

I should point out that O. onithorhyncum (specie), O. John Shirrah are also good candidates for that vanilla fragrance. But O. Sharry Baby 'Sweet Fragrance' is by far the most commercially popular. Have a look at
http://www.beautifulorchids.com/orch...harrybaby.html