Divide or not?

[ATester]

Fortunatly for the Onc. there are three p bulbs PLUS new growth for each separate plant. Hmmm...I should be a little more choosey with adhearing to what books say I guess.

THx

[MikeWA]

Sounds like everything will be fine and I doubt you have set back the plant. Oncidium are tough and not incredibly picky about being divided in my experience.

[LJA]

I agree. That many growths, the new growth should bloom for you when it matures.

[dosal]

I divide when I have leads growing in opposite directions, like in one long line. Otherwise they get potted up. My largest pots are 14 to 16" wide, so when they reach that limit I have to divide.

[ATester]

ok, well, here's another question, and I am sure that there will be almost as many answers as there are people who have responded to this thread...but what is the preferred medium to repot your orchids in? I have two mediums...one is my good ol' stand by which is medium and fine fir tree bark. I picked up a new medium as it sounded interesting and as half of my orchids are of the fine rooted variety (except for my Phals) it seemed like it would be a good choice. I picked up Osmunda fibre. It seems like would dry out fairly quickly, so if I use it, I will have to be vigilant about making sure that the plants do not dry out too quickly.

[JB_Orchidguy]

A tester osmunda is a good medium if you don't mind watering often or the plant doesn't like staying wet. You can even plant chids in rocks. The thing you have to look at is how wet the chids likes to stay and your conditions. I have Phals groing in fir bark, Sphag, and perlite/promix blend. They can even be mounted. The real key is finding a mix that does good for your conditions. I know a guy that uses a special mix he lables goofy mix that had tree fern fider, fine fir bark and other stuff in it that drys very quickly. He says he uses this because is is a waterer. Since we waters alot he needed a mix that would dry really fast so he didnt rot the roots. His Phals look awsome. I would suggest experimenting and finding a mix that works best for you and your watering habits. I grow in a GH and use alot of Sphag and on hot days can still water about every 2 or 3 days. If its not to hot they can go longer. Once of the reason is when its hot I have 6 fans going and when its not to hot I only have 3. Plus the heat with the fans going cause things to evaporate faster. If you want a recomendation I would say Sphag for Pahls, but thats what I use and may not be good for your conditions. I am just starting to try S/H again on a few plants because I have a friend not far from me that has almost all her plants in S/H and they do great, but when I tried it the first time I killed everthing in it. The problem was I think that at the time I didnt have a GH and wasn't watering them enough. So try the osmunda and then watch your plant. Take the time to bond with it. You will notice if its staying to dry by floppy leaves and dry roots. Then just water enough and either addapt to the plants conditions or change the medeum to addapt it to you. Good luck.