Alright, so I finally got around to sorting out the soil situation for my Phalaenopsis orchid. It’s been looking a bit sad lately, and I suspected the old medium was breaking down, holding way too much water. Time for a refresh!
Getting Started
First things first, I gathered up my supplies. I didn’t want anything too complicated. I grabbed:
- Orchid Bark: The main ingredient. I went for medium-sized pieces. Seemed about right for Phalaenopsis roots to grab onto and get air.
- Sphagnum Moss: Just a bit, to help hold some moisture. Don’t want it bone dry all the time.
- Perlite: Those little white volcanic rocks. Great for drainage and keeping things airy.
- A Clean Bucket: For mixing everything up.
I decided against using regular potting soil. Learned that lesson the hard way before – total root rot disaster! These orchids grow on trees in the wild, right? So they need air around their roots, not dense soil.
Prepping the Mix
Okay, prep time. I took the orchid bark and gave it a good rinse first. Just ran some water through it in a sieve to wash off any dust. Then, I soaked the bark in a bucket of water for maybe 30 minutes. I heard this helps it absorb a bit of water initially so it’s not completely dry when the orchid goes in.
While the bark was soaking, I took the sphagnum moss. It was bone dry. So, I put some in a bowl and added water, letting it soak up until it was damp but not dripping wet. I squeezed out the excess water. Didn’t need a lot of moss, just enough to dot throughout the mix.
The perlite didn’t really need any prep, maybe just a quick rinse if it looked dusty, but my bag seemed pretty clean.
Mixing it All Together
Once the bark had its soak, I drained it well. Then came the fun part – mixing! In my clean bucket, I started adding the ingredients. I didn’t use exact measurements, more like went by feel.
I put in mostly bark, maybe like 3 parts bark. Then I added about 1 part perlite. Finally, I tore the damp sphagnum moss into smaller pieces and mixed in about 1 part moss. I just used my hands to toss it all together, making sure the moss and perlite were spread out evenly through the bark, not clumped up.
The goal was a mix that looked chunky, would drain really well, but had just enough moss to hold a little bit of humidity near the roots.
Potting Up
With the mix ready, I carefully took my Phalaenopsis out of its old pot, cleaned off the old soggy medium, and trimmed any dead or mushy roots. Then I placed it in the new pot, holding it steady while I gently filled in around the roots with my fresh mix. I tapped the pot a few times to help the mix settle, but I didn’t pack it down hard. Remember, air circulation is key!
And that’s pretty much it. Gave it a light watering to help things settle further. Now it’s sitting back in its usual spot. Looks much better already, just having that fresh, airy medium. Fingers crossed the orchid loves its new home!
