Angraecum Leonis

[GreyThumb]

Hey everyone,

I recently got an Angraecum Leonis. It came in a 3" pot with about .5-1" of LFS on top and some type of bark media underneath. It hasn't done much, one way or the other, besides dropping the bottom two leaves that were in contact with the sphagnum.

I know you're supposed to wait for new root growth before transplanting to any new media, but they also say to repot any new plant you get, since you don't know the conditions of the roots.

Should I go ahead and repot this to s/h now, and does anyone know if this plant grows okay with this method?

My current conditions for it will be in a bedroom with a SE and West facing window. It'll be near the window, but also mostly under a 6500k CFL that runs around 14hrs a day. RH is between 40 and 55. Temps are between 68 and 75 throughout the year. Thanks for any help you can provide.

[ksriramkumar]

Angraecum genus can be tough on you if you repot during wrong season. Posting a photo might help.

[Dorsetman]

If in doubt, get it out ( of the pot) - who knows what horrors are lurking there. And you can't go far wrong in the northern hemisphere at this time of the year. Cut off any rotten roots, dust with sulphur (or cinnamon dust or whatever) and dry off. Then it won't hurt to leave it out of the pot and spray lightly occasionally, until you see the first new root. Then repot andonly water lightly for a few months until - if ever - iot is growing well. Angraecums in my experience are slow growers, and like it shadier and more humid than most things.

[GreyThumb]

That sounds like a good plan. The only question I have about it is, is leaving it out of the media not as much of a change as putting in straight into the semi-hydro? Moving them from whatever their in, into the open air seems like it would be a pretty big change. Also, the humidity would be lower because the house is drier. I don't think the current media is holding a lot, but the humidity is probably higher than if it was just sitting out.

I could potentially mist it twice a day, but is that enough? I also read that angraecums don't like having their roots disturbed and that would be changing their environment twice.

I'm definitely not arguing with what you're saying and it might be the way to go. Those were just concerns that popped into my head and I wanted to get your opinion on them. Thanks a lot.

[DoreenVDT]

Earlier this year I picked up a Ang. leonis at the Cherry City Orchid Show. Since I grow in our home, under lights; the conditions are very different than greenhouse grown plants. I always repot the new orchids in a media that I am used to growing in. In this case the Ang. leonis was potted in wine corks with a top dressing of N.Z. moss. It was placed into a reptile tank under the lights to increase the humidity around that mini angraecoids that I grow. My specimen of this species has not lost any of it's foliage, must like the conditions.