# Another question about Paph. parishii!



## GregoryTJ (Oct 11, 2015)

So 2 weeks ago I posted this thread: http://www.slippertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=38864

I took the advice of the other users and planted it in a pot slightly larger than the root ball, but it has already grown a root out of the bottom of the pot! Is it okay if I just leave it like this? The root in question is poking through a very small hole so I'm worried about it being strangled or broken off of the plant.

Here is a picture of the root: https://flic.kr/p/zmWaYA

Here is the entire plant: https://flic.kr/p/zuDoyM

I was also wondering if this plant looks blooming sized to you guys?

Thanks again!


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## Justin (Oct 11, 2015)

root will be fine. plant looks blooming size.

but what kind of bark is that? it doesn't look like typical orchid bark mix--usually Paphs would go in a mix with much smaller pieces. it does seem to have peat or some other kind of fine grade material in it to keep moisture though.


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## Rick (Oct 11, 2015)

What size pot is it in now? It looks like a 3" pot for a plant with a 24" span.

That was a pretty typical scenario for many of my multies until changing things around.

Specifically for parrishii (after loosing a few), I found they are willing to bloom on very small plants (less than 10" across) and then promptly die.

If the biggest root ball you can get on a big plant fits in a small pot then something else is wrong. Probably overfeeding. Parrishii seems to be pretty famous for "growing top heavy". In the wild they grow up in trees and have expansive root systems. 

I started using baskets for my parrishii a couple years ago and cut back the food.

I have roots coming out the side of a 6" basket, and the plant bloomed successfully on a 20" span plant.

My feeding rate is a fraction of what I did four years ago and getting much bigger plants with better root mass to leaf mass ratios.


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## troy (Oct 11, 2015)

I have cut back on heavy fertilizing and use good water with tremendously great results!!!!


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## Rick (Oct 11, 2015)

troy said:


> I have cut back on heavy fertilizing and use good water with tremendously great results!!!!



Troy

What do you consider "good water"?

It used to be anything RO, distilled, or rain was good and everything else bad.

I used to use strict RO, but have increased the use of my well water to about 10% (the rest RO) for some years now. So baseline conductivity is about 50uS.

This is still very dilute compared to the tap water in Nashville with a conductivity of 250uS which is certainly able to support excellent plants.

In common would be plenty of Ca, Mg, and SO4 available.


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## Paphluvr (Oct 11, 2015)

Justin said:


> What kind of bark is that? it doesn't look like typical orchid bark mix--usually Paphs would go in a mix with much smaller pieces. it does seem to have peat or some other kind of fine grade material in it to keep moisture though.



This was my first thought too when I looked at your plant photo. The plant also looks rather limp considering what a healthy parishii should look like.


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