# good news...and bad news...



## noel (Sep 10, 2009)

hi there,recently,i purchased a phal cornu cevi 'normal'
i'm very happy with is as it is floriferous and lush and has so many healthy roots....
the pic





but after some thinking,i'm gonna move it to a basket,but the bad news is i have no idea how to fit it to a 4 inch basket,because the roots are gigantic and they're all healthy and growing,and there's no way i will cut them off
any suggestion?


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## SlipperKing (Sep 10, 2009)

First you have to ask yourself "Why do I want it in a basket" If it's only a way of hanging it then use a big basket and set the whole thing inside "as is". It looks like it is doing great, why fix something that ain't broke?Whatever you do. soak the plant for 30 mins. or so until the roots turn green and soft. Then you can curl them a round inside of a basket, pot or whatever. generally, cutting Phals roots does not set a plant back to any extent. They will just branch out more.


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## noel (Sep 10, 2009)

thanks for the fast suggestion...
is it better for me to leave it in the same cork or move it to a bigger one?
BTW,do you know how to fix it's reversing inflorescens so that the flowers can face the same direction as the leaves?


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## NYEric (Sep 10, 2009)

Usually flowers grow towards the light source. Also you could ball the rots up and put them in a larger mesh basket.


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## noel (Sep 10, 2009)

thanks,but do you know how to fix it with method with ASAP results?


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## NYEric (Sep 10, 2009)

I know; but I wouldn't do it!


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## SlipperKing (Sep 10, 2009)

No fast way. Face the plant towards the light.....flowers will follow!:clap:


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## noel (Sep 10, 2009)

NYEric said:


> I know; but I wouldn't do it!



what is it,i'm curious....
is it harming?


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## goldenrose (Sep 10, 2009)

I'm with Rick, it's happy as it is, a mount hangs as easily as a basket, doesn't it?


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## noel (Sep 10, 2009)

goldenrose said:


> I'm with Rick, it's happy as it is, a mount hangs as easily as a basket, doesn't it?



wow,everyone prefer the mount....
anyway,do i need to move it to a bigger mount or not?


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## SlipperFan (Sep 10, 2009)

noel said:


> wow,everyone prefer the mount....
> anyway,do i need to move it to a bigger mount or not?



If you decide to move it to a bigger mount, don't unmount it -- just attach a larger slab behind this one.


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## NYEric (Sep 10, 2009)

noel said:


> what is it,i'm curious....
> is it harming?


If you look on some websites of [aiwanese] growers you will find fancy contraptions to bend and shape stems for presentation, lovely results but totally un-natural!


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## cnycharles (Sep 10, 2009)

a basket is open, so if this plant is growing lots of roots then the new roots will just grow outside and through the sides of the basket. you wouldn't really need to stuff roots inside of anything. if the roots aren't breaking, or aren't in the way, you could just put the whole thing on a larger mount like already suggested. there's nothing wrong with using a basket, it's just a slightly different way to keep the plant situated in a spot in your growing area. if you have clear walls and are hanging your mounted plant against the clear wall, the flowers will probably try to grow facing the light/wall. if you have in a basket, you'll likely need to find a new spot where it can hang freely (and take up slightly more room), but then the spikes might grow 'up' more and flower so that you could turn a basket to see the flowers and might look less funny.


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## noel (Sep 11, 2009)

cnycharles said:


> a basket is open, so if this plant is growing lots of roots then the new roots will just grow outside and through the sides of the basket. you wouldn't really need to stuff roots inside of anything. if the roots aren't breaking, or aren't in the way, you could just put the whole thing on a larger mount like already suggested. there's nothing wrong with using a basket, it's just a slightly different way to keep the plant situated in a spot in your growing area. if you have clear walls and are hanging your mounted plant against the clear wall, the flowers will probably try to grow facing the light/wall. if you have in a basket, you'll likely need to find a new spot where it can hang freely (and take up slightly more room), but then the spikes might grow 'up' more and flower so that you could turn a basket to see the flowers and might look less funny.



like this?





















BTW,that place gets afternoon direct sun for few hours,is it okay for phal cornu cevi?the sunlight came from the leaf's direction....


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## cnycharles (Sep 11, 2009)

impressive plant! one thing I noticed were the reflections from the plastic walls... I noticed in my growing cart, that some of my plants (mostly phal species) that were near shiny plastic, the buds would be pointing themselves towards what I think was reflected light off of the plastic. If the plants were out from the wall and under the lights more the buds would grow towards the light. I can't remember if I read it somewhere, but it struck me that the buds were pointing towards strong polarized light (reflected). ..of course that's just a guess. I think if your walls weren't reflective the buds might just grow out towards the sunlight. I don't know why this would be... If your plant looks really happy with the sunlight, and the leaves don't get really bleached yellow, then they should be okay. I think it depends if the leaves get warm at all


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## paphioboy (Sep 13, 2009)

Don't try to squeeze the roots in a basket. CC loves its roots hanging in the air. Even if you grow in a pot, the roots will snake out and hang down.. Its just its nature. And it will grow much better that way..


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