Miniature Dendrobiums growing out of wood??

[justlearning!!]

I have a couple of orchids that grow out of a little chunk of wood in each pot. I can't seem to find anything online about how/when to repot anything like that. I've had them for a few years, and they have lots of roots sticking out of the wood, but how can you tell when it's time to repot them?? Thanks!!

[thistle]

ditto, same here, I picked them up at a few places & they seem to be in chunks of wood, in baskets, I've been trying to water every few days, but I'm wondering when & in what to repot them?...Thistle

[Gin]

I might be wrong, but it sounds like plugs of tree fern fibre , They are put into those when little by a machine .. no joke .. the only way I know is to pick it out as best you can, soak first , they tend to hold to much water if left and new is put around them in a larger pot . Problem is Dends. do not like having thier root disturbed . I have a couple of the Mini. Dends. that is how they were when I got them . The best time to move them is when you see new growth from the base of your plant . You can pot them in bark, pick out the large hunks . I have a couple in the semi hydro pellets actually in semi hydro ,they bloom and seem happy . Hope this helps a little . Gin

[mde]

Soak the wood really well, and then 'tease' it apart. I've had three dendrobrium hybrids that were potted this way. That wood holds a lot of moisture, so you have to be careful to not overwater, especially in the winter, if you leave them this way. I recommend repotting them, as I killed one of them last winter not realizing how much moisture the wood was holding.
I just took my time, and slowly peeled the layers of wood away. I repotted in medium grade bark mix and the other two are doing well now.

Matt

[mde]

Gin- You beat me to the submit reply button.

Sorry for the redundancy!

Matt

[thistle]

Should I wait til the blooms are finished or does it matter? I have one that has finished blooming & has new growth, I'll try & move that one now, but most of mine are TJ & HD specials, still in full bloom (I'm partial to blue-toned flowers) & would it be prudent to wait? I moved the one plant that had ceased blooming outside, but a squirrel chewed it, so they're all inside now-currently, I'm trying a mix that is 50% CHC, 25% charcoal, 20% perlite, & 5% small aquarium pebbles, would this be ok for dends.?...Thistle

[Gin]

I would wait till they are done blooming and starting new growth like the one you have , just be careful of overwatering it . I agree with Matt the plugs hold a lot of water , I rotted a couple . I can't comment on the mix as I don't use the CHC it stays to wet for my conditions . Gin, old fast fingers lolol .

[Piper]

It's always best to wait till a plant finishes flowering, but I repot when it needs it, flowers or no. Haven't had much problem repotting blooming plants. I hate those plugs for all the reasons stated and if it were me, I'd want the plant repotting in a more reliable mix sooner rather than later.

Julie

[thistle]

I repotted 3 of those 'wood-chunk' dends today-2 of them were a real deal-I just started a new p/t job at a garden center (a few orchids, but horribly overpriced!) & today was my day off-I swung by HD before doing my grocery shopping, spotted some sad dends flopped on their sides, no label on the pot (I had purchased some the week before in a decorative pot for 14.95), asked the guy how much they were, & since he couldn't identify them, he very kindly gave me the lowest price he could find for the orchids (which was a petunia orchid seed, I think), so I ended up paying 1.13 each for 2 Salaya Fancys, one in bloom, one a bit beat up. I realize the pricing was incorrect, but since they were past their prime & probably headed to the dumpster, I felt good about my 'rescue'.

I took them home, soaked them for about 20 minutes in a weakly fertilized solution, teased the chunks of bark out & repotted them in rose pots (tall, skinny pots) in clay pellets. I plan on leaving the dendrobiums outside this summer & I'm trying to figure out how to hang them on the fence.

I've increased my orchid collection quite rapidly & realize I need to slow down & make sure they're all getting the proper attention...Thistle

[orchidaddict789]

Teasing it apart needs lots of patience. My dend is still on the plug and same thing here, the new growth is growing off the side of the wood and now it's nearly in midair. Spring is a good repotting time...orchids put out growths. I've heard many people repot when the new growths have new roots starting, but mine are only 1 inch tall, so now a good time?

I seriously need to repot it, since I've been delaying it since last year. The roots are stuck fast to the wood, and they crawl into the tiniest little cracks--I'll be surprised if I get the plant off without breaking some roots. Oh well, I'll take a deep breath and get on with it as soon as possible. For those of you who will repot such plants in the future, I wish you all good luck! In my opinion, it's no easy job...