Potting media

[dodidoki]

I have interesting experience with potting mixes.When I started to grow slipperorchids, i used standar mix, charcoal, bark, cocohusk.Sometimes it worked sometimes did not.There were hard to grow plants, eg. thaianums.They just suffered and died.I planted them into pure gravel after i got a rungsuriyanum in pure gravel from thaiwan with many healthy roots and growths.Now it is the beginning of a procejt to collect ideal mix / species.I got a delenatii album.It was in state of clinical death butva did not throw away but diggeed it into gravel.And started to grow.Here are few pics.

 

[dodidoki]

Fist is canhii for 2 years at me, leaves turned to full dark green. 2nd is thaianum without any yellowing leaf.3rd is dead delenatii album .Digged into gravel.4 weeks later.

 

[dodidoki]

I will update if I collect more experiences.

 

[gego]

What type of gravel are you using?

 

[dodidoki]

Basalt, 3 mm and lava rock 1.5 cm, sometimes just pure basalt.Eg.druryii loves it.

 

[Geek_it]

Basalt, 3 mm and lava rock 1.5 cm, sometimes just pure basalt.Eg.druryii loves it.

What media mix are you suggesting for delenatii?

 

[dodidoki]

I grow them in 1/1 pumice/ 25 mm orchiata bark mix.I m not at homa, i can post pics tomorrow.

 

[Geek_it]

thanks!

 

[musa]

Are there differences in basalt gravel? Yours is whitish, the kind I found was very dark to black?

 

[Ray]

Yes, the mineralogy of basalt is variable.

Just a word to the wise: it seems doubtful that the plants are “looking” for a specific potting medium. Instead, they are looking for a combination of specific growing conditions, which varies with your ambient cultural parameters and container choice, in addition to the choice of potting medium.

What works great for one person, might be sure death in another’s conditions.

 

[dodidoki]

Few updates in unusual potting media.

 

[dodidoki]

Druyrii in basalt gravel, thaianum in mix of pumice and gravel,rungy in gravel, canhii in gravel.Same plants as at the beginning of this thread.

 

[dodidoki]

What media mix are you suggesting for delenatii?

 

[Ozpaph]

works well for you!

 

[Stone]

Basalt, 3 mm and lava rock 1.5 cm, sometimes just pure basalt.Eg.druryii loves it.

Do you use the same size gravel throughout the pot? Has your watering changed?

 

[Sky7Bear]

I recently read a large number of old Orchid Digests in which the author, whose name I should remember and don't, wrote of the many places in Asia (mostly China) where he traveled, describing the local growing conditions of various Paph species. Almost all were lithophytic, often to a significant degree, so it should come as no surprise that perhaps many of them may be easier to maintain in pots with various kinds of rocks, and I would include Ray's semi-hydroponic as well as his rockwool/leca mixtures (which is in a sense a form of semi-hydroponic, with the rockwool being the reservoir of the water). Of course many of the species grow on limestone, so perhaps more experimentation with that, at least as part of the mix, might be helpful. The biggest advantages of all of the lithophytic approaches is that one does not have to deal with decomposing organic material without the presence of large amounts of air as they would have in nature.