Phaius, terrestrial culture

[Dawn-oh]

I have read something different in every book about the sort of potting material to use for terrestrial orchids. Everything from a loam/manure/sand mix to a fine orchid mix. I have a tankervillae that is doing horribly in the manure, soil, etc mix, shows no new growth at all, one (out of two) large leaves is browning badly. I have a different Phaius in a finer bark type mix with some sphagnum mixed in, this is much healthier, but since the tankervillae shows no new growth, is it basically dying? Is transplanting it to a coarser mix advisable at this time? Also have read to only transplant immediately after the thing has bloomed, which in THIS current state, is bloody unlikely to happen! So much conflicting info out there! HELP!
Dawn-oh

[Cjcorner]

My new phaius is in spagnum only and it's got tons of new plantlets. First time i've seen one in spag and it's the healthiest one i've ever seen. My other, I mixed a bunch of "junk" stuff. I took potting stuff from other plants i'd repotted, some peat moss, very large bark chunks and a few leaves and twigs i'd clipped from around the yard and mixed it all together. That plant took awhile but it's finally beginning to take off...even giving me a spike this year. They like alot more fertilizer than normal plants. When I have a bucket of my fish emulsion fertilizer and other fertilizers mixed, and have alot left over I dump it on my ground orchids.
Good Luck....these are highly rewarding orchids to grow. Even without flowers they are so pretty.

[Dawn-oh]

Thank you for the info, it does sound like my mix is too heavy. I just don't know if transplanting NOW is a good idea, but on the other hand, either way it could be a goner. I might have nothing to lose.
Shoot... Finding another one in the tundra of MN is unlikly, on the cheap I mean. <G>
Here goes nothin'....
Dawn-oh