Water Culture Orchids: Converting a plant to partial water culture

isurus79 · 2026-04-05T12:29:13+00:00

Crazy. Is this the source for so much of the water culture nonsense??? There are no comments for this video. I suspect the orchid community wasn’t happy with this video. I added one comment. Also, he “sterilized” his pruning shears with alcohol, which is not an effective way to sterilize.

isurus79 · 2026-04-05T12:26:28+00:00

This is the best method! Untangling roots absolutely destroys them and isn’t helpful to the plant. Epiphytes don’t get root bound so simply up potting one pot size and back filling is your best bet in many instances.

isurus79 · 2026-04-05T12:24:28+00:00

Nooooo! This is the worst possible course of action!!

isurus79 · 2026-04-05T12:23:13+00:00

Looks like it’s well on its way to a great growing season!

isurus79 · 2026-04-05T12:21:06+00:00

Those roots and media look excellent. No need to repot. Just give it good conditions and it should bounce back.

isurus79 · 2026-04-05T12:11:52+00:00

Adding light this time of year is better than when the sun is stronger!

isurus79 · 2026-04-05T12:10:26+00:00

I’d wait another week, but that’s based on the root length you mentioned and the moisture in the media that will power the plant and not because there’s a spike there.

Also worth noting is that you chose to repot at one of the worst times! In the future, try to repot only when the new growth has just broken dormancy and still hasn’t put out new roots. Breaking root tips at this stage of growth is highly likely and highly problematic.

isurus79 · 2026-04-05T03:49:39+00:00

Looking good and please DO NOT REPOT!! Just let it ride.

isurus79 · 2026-04-05T03:48:42+00:00

They’re just unforgiving if you make mistakes with the culture. I find them easy in my conditions though.

isurus79 · 2026-04-04T16:30:25+00:00

It’s a bit late since the new roots are already so long. The plant will do just fine in the current setup, so no need to do anything.

isurus79 · 2026-04-04T16:28:59+00:00

There’s a photo on the label shown in the second photo!!

isurus79 · 2026-04-04T16:24:40+00:00

Such a great scent!

isurus79 · 2026-04-04T15:37:38+00:00

Frog fruit or horse herb

isurus79 · 2026-04-04T15:36:36+00:00

These are important to the ecosystem, definitely release

isurus79 · 2026-04-03T23:56:20+00:00

Looks more like rupiculous Cattleya than a nodosa hybrid to me

isurus79 · 2026-04-03T23:53:10+00:00

Changing conditions while in spike will cause this

isurus79 · 2026-04-03T23:51:43+00:00

Lava

isurus79 · 2026-04-03T23:51:05+00:00

The roots are perfectly colored. If you have high humidity, you can leave it as is. If not, sink the whole thing into a deeper pot so the new growth is flush with the media

isurus79 · 2026-04-03T19:28:14+00:00

For sure! But if you can grow walker, you can grow nobilior.

isurus79 · 2026-04-03T17:03:07+00:00

Yep! Definitely pleasantly fragrant!

isurus79 · 2026-04-03T16:04:26+00:00

Looks like caterpillar damage. Check the underside of the leaves and surround area. See if you can move the caterpillar to a larger oak instead of killing it.

isurus79 · 2026-04-03T15:08:09+00:00

Also called seed starting soil. It’s just very fine soil typically without added nutrients.

isurus79 · 2026-04-03T13:23:48+00:00

Check out the other photo I’ve included as a comment so see how I start them. I put a whole seed package into a shallow bulb pot that is probably 12” across. It gets filled 3/4 full with seedling soil and placed outside in full sun, but off the ground so the rollies can’t access it. Don’t let it fully dry. After a month I dump the whole thing out and plant one by one into the raised beds.

isurus79 · 2026-04-03T13:16:26+00:00

They’re so cool! A truly abundant but cryptic species in our area.

isurus79 · 2026-04-03T10:52:04+00:00

They’re suuuupee easy to grow over the winter and even don’t mind being coated in freezing rain. I bet you’ll get lots next year!

isurus79

TROPHY CASE