Overpotting culture

[Carper]

There's been questions on the effects of overpotting, but with care and plenty of observations of your plants requirements and cultural needs, you can still attain solid root formation. I've found this has definitely benefitted my plants in there overall structure, however, each species and hybrid has to be treated accordingly. The following having filled there respective pots.

1. Paph philippinense - 7.5 litre pot
2. Paph Taiwan - 5 litre pot
3. Paph rothschildianum - 7.5 litre pot

Gary
UK

 

[phraggy]

Brilliant as usual Gary. How large were the plants when you put them in these sizes of pots? Is this orchiata 12-18mm with added sponge rock?? Looks you are about to split them!!

Ed

 

[troy]

Monster plants, wow!! If you split that phillipinense I'd buy a growth

 

[Carper]

Brilliant as usual Gary. How large were the plants when you put them in these sizes of pots? Is this orchiata 12-18mm with added sponge rock?? Looks you are about to split them!!

Ed

The roth was a 2 growth, phili a 6 growth & Taiwan 2 growth when I bought them. I roughly doubled the size of the pots when I repotted last time. I've had them all a few years now. Yes, for this size pot I will use this size min with a top dress of the 9-12mm. Unless these plants suffer with their growth or blooms, they will just get repotted and into larger pots if necessary. I've not had plant that has suffered because of a size related issue so until that happens I'm hoping they grow on!!

Gary

 

[troy]

I don't understand how you are successful with this method, I've killed 3 plants overpotting. how often do you water? What do you fertilize with, what strength? I just got three plants and slightly underpotted to get ready for winter

 

[gonewild]

The only reason "over potting" causes plant death is because the correct moisture amounts were not maintained.

 

[Carper]

The only reason "over potting" causes plant death is because the correct moisture amounts were not maintained.

Right Lance,

I've spent a lot of time experimenting, including holding my pots, looking into the media, feed strength, air movement, drying times etc. I will only water when they need it. If in doubt, I don't!!!. You won't kill a paph in a short period through shortage of water. Most of my plants are drying out on the day they've been watered as I increase the heat. If I think they need moisture, I'll foliar feed until I know it's good to go through the pot. Any plant that seems to be holding excess water either gets repotted into fresh medium or placed on the heat mat.

Gary

 

[Rick]

I've found that moisture content in open mixes becomes much less of an issue when you cut feed strength down (to what most would consider "starvation" level).

 

[troy]

Keeping the fertilizer down = less decomposition of media? Overpotting with fresh media - changing once a year? It looks like yur using large orchiata with perlite? Orchiata is ph neutral, do you use fir bark?

 

[Justin]

nice growing! i agree mature multifloral Paphs do very well with big pots. is that your Taiwan division from Orchid Inn?

 

[dodidoki]

Right Lance,

I've spent a lot of time experimenting, including holding my pots, looking into the media, feed strength, air movement, drying times etc. I will only water when they need it. If in doubt, I don't!!!. You won't kill a paph in a short period through shortage of water. Most of my plants are drying out on the day they've been watered as I increase the heat. If I think they need moisture, I'll foliar feed until I know it's good to go through the pot. Any plant that seems to be holding excess water either gets repotted into fresh medium or placed on the heat mat.

Gary

It is in sharp contrast with "paph in stagnant water" theory...

 

[troy]

Yes

 

[Carper]

nice growing! i agree mature multifloral Paphs do very well with big pots. is that your Taiwan division from Orchid Inn?

The bigger multis do seem to thrive in the bigger pots. I bought a large David Ott in June which was potbound in a 3 litre, had to cut off the old pot, repotted into a 7.5 litre and I've just noticed new roots at the base. Yes the division of Taiwan I got from someone in the UK who originally purchased it from Sam.

I have been reducing the feed strength to half what I had been using and still getting vg results Rick. This should only result in the media lasting longer as I can now tell when the orchiata needs replacing for my plants to still get full benefit.

I only repot Troy when I feel the media needs it. This all comes down to water retention, drying times and root/foliar growth. I only use orchiata as it has suited my plants the best by far. I've tried and tested other media mixes with limited success.

Gary
UK

 

[Bjorn]

Matter of watering really. Also the positive effect of reducing the fertiliser additions. Plants grow better with room for the roots, my benchspace does not allow that! Perhaps wider pots are better than taller?

 

[gonewild]

There is an underlying issue also with root efficiency. Roots, just like water and air pipes, have more efficiency with less turns and corners.
More efficient roots mean the plant can get the required amount of water from dryer soil. Also roots that are crammed together in a small pot are less efficient because a large percentage of the root surface is actually in contact with other root surfaces rather than mineral rich media.

 

[gonewild]

Matter of watering really. Also the positive effect of reducing the fertiliser additions. Plants grow better with room for the roots, my benchspace does not allow that! Perhaps wider pots are better than taller?

Wider is better than taller. But you must adapt the watering procedure to account for the media depth.
In a deep pot there will be a horizontal zone or layer that is the best root area depending on how and when water is applied.
Also with deep pots there is an effect of gravity where the plant must lift the water higher to reach the leaf tips. It takes energy to raise water upward.

 

[Carper]

A small note is that during my experimenting I decided to put extra holes in the sides of my pots. The size depending on the pot size. This has made the drying of the media more even especially with the good air circulation.

Gary

 

[troy]

Plant roots in sitting water?

 

[Berthold]

Wider is better than taller.

Yes because You have more surface of substrate to the air and the oxygen in the air will kill the anaerobe bacteria in the substrate. You have to increase watering for wide pots but water is cheap.

 

[troy]

Everytime I had plants submerged they died