worms in the orchid media

[andreaemilia]

Hello everyone
I had the nasty surprise to find some worms (long, thin, pink, looking like baby earth worms) in the orchid media while transplanting one of my cymbs this spring. I didn't knew what to do about it, I washed the roots thouroughly, and transplanted the plant in semi-hydro. so far so good
Now, one of my friends had the surprides to find some worms in the media of a few of his orchids, but also got a solution: one plants a clove of garlic in the media. the garlic will sprout, and along the orchid you'll have a young garlic plant. the aromatic oils of the garlic drive the worms out of the pot, so no need to tranplant if the infestation is not too strong, or the plant can't be transplanted right in that moment
It works for other potted plants,too, with the regular earth worms
I hope this info is usefull, I sured could have used it in the spring

[Halloamey]

That is an interesting experiment ! I am wondering if it works out the same for snails. I will surely try this.

[King Kjeldz]

i don see nuttin wrong with earthworms in the pot..arent cym. terrestrial anyways?

[Chris1140]

i don see nuttin wrong with earthworms in the pot..arent cym. terrestrial anyways?

I agree, the worms are feeding on decaying organic matter not the orchid roots; but I wouldn't want them in my plants regardless.

[Halloamey]

Though earthworms are good critters, they are still not desirable in orchid media as they will hasten the breakdown process of the bark or other organic components like coconut husk etc. But the presence of these critters in the first place is an indication that the media is too moist and broken down.

[coeruleo]

it is very natural to have the worms there. might be the best ever orchid fertilizer? they sell 'worm poop' fertilizer here. it comes in a recycled plastic pop bottle with a spray nozzle. my plants love it. shouldn't hurt your plants anyway, and most likely good for them. worms will eat the mushy stuff that otherwise clogs the medium, and they would help keep it open and airy.

[shirleycox]

If there is a worm in your orchid pot that could be an indication that the potting media has broken down and should be replaced with new orchid media. I am not sure what kind of worm it is but there are some worms feed on the roots. This can lead your plant to die.

Get some orchid potting media at your local garden center and repot it. You can use the current pot but before using the current one sterilize properly or you can buy a new one.