The Awkward Orchids - Repotting & Troubleshooting | Climbing Orchids & Zygopetalums

[@normantorok5919]

Just gone back to watch this again...that was a nice space you were working in. :)

[@marygorchidsmore2058]

I can't believe you ever struggled with any orchid!!! Lovely repotting! It's the same for me too, zygos don't do well for me. I'm sure your zygo s will enjoy in their new set up. I like the DIY self watering gage . Thanks for sharing and happy growing.

[@colleenneville]

Hi Annabelle, I have quite a number of Zygopetalums and Propabstopetalum(quite similar) and find they grow very easily here. Australia - Busselton, Western Australia. We have a climate of varying extremes - max up to 40deg in summer and down to single digits 5 to 20 in winter. All my orchids are in bark and Phals inside but everything else in a shade house. The Zygopetalums bloom easily. I don’t have a Crinitum but will be buying one soon from a very small nursery called Orchidup. None of my orchids are under lights and I adjust the watering throughout the year dependant on temperature. Really interesting situation and I can hear your frustration. You have a beautiful collection of orchids and many that I know I would be unsuccessful with. Take care x

[@bernieleung1]

Hi Annabel, your DIY water gauge is ingenious. I just can't wait to see your video showing us the material of the inner stick and how you do it so well. You should apply for a patent, haha.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Thanks! It's not an original idea, but I've never done it because most videos use pvc pipes or tubes and I just couldn't get any particularly cheap, and couldnt find the right products. I was staring at my lechuza and just decided to order smoothie straws and plastic test tubes and play around with small drinks straws and polystyrene... and they work 😂 so goes to show, you can literally use anything! I've been saving loads of plastic straws up since I got some silicon reusable ones, I used to reuse the plastic ones anyway, and I didnt want to throw them away. So now they can get used 🙂

[@Msgabrielaarboleda]

Haven’t even watched the video but so have to tell you I’m so happy any time I see a notification from you.♥️ I have to stop whatever I’m doing!😂

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Awh thanks!! That makes my day 🙂💗 I hope you aren't disappointed! 🙂

[@esthersorchids2288]

Hi Annabelle, i have Zygopetalums in bark, moss, perlite mix and I only had 1 plant for 1 year. Then I bought a massive 1 to divide, they are just in bark. I get warm summer up to 25-30 deg C with not much of a day/night change during summer. It's Autum now maybe days 17-20c but nights 9-15c in my conservatory. As you said at the end of your video its the cooler temps that keep them happy but I was also warned they dont like repots and like small pots where their roots are very snug. Im sure yours will enjoy their new cooler area.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Thanks for letting me know! It drives me a bit nuts because I've had the crinitum in a bark moss perlite mix for 8-10 months at least, it may be more, it's just never done well for me over several years. It was in straight bark when I got it, flowered and then went downhill. So I tried SH, kept going downhill but did grow roots, but the tips blackened and they only grew very short. Usually not an issue once the roots are in the pot with SH, so I cut fertilizer and it didn't help. Continued rotting new growths and leaves. So as a last resort, repotted into bark/ moss perlite, left well alone, watered when approaching dryness, and it continued to rot new growths and leaves 🤷‍♀️ So, now I'm chucking it downstairs. It's my nemesis plant maybe I've fussed too much with it 🤷‍♀️🤦‍♀️😂

[@iandale8062]

I use mainly lava rocks and flood the pots just faster than they can drain so everything gets wet. Twice a week in summer and once in the cooler months. everything looks great and there has been heaps of new growth and roots. I'm in Australia.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Glad that you've found an inorganic setup that works for you 🙂 Would be a bit much for me with all that watering 🙂

[@KP-gw5zv]

Please do the DIY self watering gage for self watering pots. I like it when the orchid grower shows us that they have struggles with certain orchids and it makes me feel like they are human and they aren't perfect. I think that maybe being in a cooler environment may do better. Fingers crossed. Love this video. Thank you and have a real great day.

[@maximiliansantiago7469]

A trick : watch movies at KaldroStream. I've been using it for watching a lot of movies lately.

[@orionsonny3220]

@Maximilian Santiago yea, I've been using KaldroStream for since december myself =)

[@brodierussell74]

@Maximilian Santiago yea, have been watching on kaldroStream for since november myself :)

[@deaconenoch3456]

@Maximilian Santiago definitely, I have been using KaldroStream for years myself :D

[@orchidgarden3124]

I wish I could send you some of the type of lava rock we have in the US. It’s very water retentive and wicks pretty well. I’ve never used it in semi-hydro, but I know some people do. It stays wet longer than leca by far. It’s much more porous.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Would be really interested if there were other types! I have read that lava rock varies alot, and from experience with a few brands of pumice I've noticed some is like concrete and holds almost no water, whereas some has a nice honeycomb and holds lots. But I could only find one reasonably priced lava rock seller, and it was £30 for a medium sized bag on amazon through this german seller! I'm using it up, I find it quite interesting. Maybe it holds more water than I think, but it seems to dry within a day when I wash it. I meant to do a media test, started doing it but hadn't washed the materials, so when all the dust came off it messed with the weights. So started over and got a bit annoyed with it 🤦‍♀️🤣 Will do it properly soon! 🙂

[@elainereilly4686]

Zygo are a real pain! I like the water gauge idea. Please do a video on how you make them. Thanks for sharing.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

They are! Sure will do! Thanks 🙂

[@annebroder9902]

I like your DIY setup, what is the role of the smaller straw inside the larger one?

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Hi! The smaller straw is the water level indicator.

[@darcylyon9986]

Have you tried potting the Zygos like terrestrial plants? Miss orchid girl used peat and 50% pearlite. I use a mix of coco peat, small pine bark and pearlite. Her soil-pearlite mix seems to work really great

[@TheOrchidRoom]

That's what I did with these, the mix replicates a terrestrial mix more closely. I am wary of coco peat, as over time it holds onto nutrients due to high cation exchange capacity, and you have to use specific flush products to detach them. It is naturally high in potassium and phosphorous, which can result in lockout of other nutrients over time if not carefully managed. As a rule I also go for inorganic media due to sustainability and longevity/ reusability, which in the long run is better for our environment 🙂 Perlite is very similar to seramis, I compared the two in an inorganic media test, with perlite holding on to more water due to smaller particle size and higher porosity, but when you surround that with a soil mix some of those properties are lost. There are both epiphtyic and terrestrial species of zygopetalum- species are more difficult that hybrids.

[@OrchieDee]

Lol ahhh the zygos. Mine live, and grow and have decent roots. But never flower. There’s something off about them.. they aren’t ‘quite right’. Recently repotted then finally after 2 years.. hopefully they establish ok 🤞🏼🤞🏼 (a lot of finger crossing with this one)

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Well it sounds like yours live and grow better than mine 😂 do you keep them in your open balcony type room? They're so frustrating! I'll keep my fingers crossed too for yours to re-establish quickly after the repot! 🙂

[@wandashaw3551]

I would like to see how you make your water gage! I've just gotten three Oncidum types and I'm trying them in self watering. Very excited to see how they do! This is my first attempt at self watering. 😁

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Thanks, Ill make a video then, they aren't very professional but seem to do the job! 🙂 I'm working on some prettier ones for some cute little pots I got for my laelias!

[@wandashaw3551]

The Orchid Room great, I can’t wait to see how you make them! I’m going to try them out after your video! 🥰

[@lynnbrooks5503]

Does the aquarium gravel not drop through the media and go to the bottom of the pot, and when you repot, is it easy to retrieve from the larger mix?

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Hi! No, it stays on top of the LECA. When you repot you can just tip it off, or if you want to sterilize it in with the LECA, it sinks to the bottom in big tubs- then you pour the leca out and the gravel stays behind.

[@carynholden6421]

Could the Zygos not like something they are taking up. IE to much salt in your nutrient mix or even overly sensitive to the minerals coming from the leca. Or even not liking the water that is sitting in the bottom for long periods. I have found that the waters ph in my reservoir shoots up really high after two days. Draculas leaf tip turn brown from salts, even the slightest. Just a thought.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

You may want to check out temporary hardness, or pH changes due to carbonic acid converting to co2 in the reservoir as a cause of your pH shifts, very common with tap water. As I said I had these problems growing in bark and moss. Very unlikely to be related to inorganic materials. I have noticed dramatic changes in the Zygopetalum crinitum since moving to a cooler location.

[@carynlaw8459]

I am not familiar with the mixture you are using for the planting medium. Does it wick up in a self watering pot? And, what proportions are you mixing for the medium. Thank you from California, USA

[@TheOrchidRoom]

I use different mixes for different orchids, depending on the air to water ratio the individual orchid requires. They all wick yes. You may want to check out my other repots or inorganic media trials, where I characterise each one if you are interested 🙃

[@cherylpenn4509]

I just have one Zygo. It is just in medium bark. As soon as its dry, I run water through or soak depending on the heat. Im in S. Africa. Dry and hot in Summer and cold in winter. Bright light. No sun. Doing ok and cant wait for a bloom.

[@orchidgarden3124]

You might want to try giving the zygos more calcium than the other orchids get to stave off the rotting of new growths. I’ve been doing this with one of my zygos that was having that issue and it seems to have stopped that problem. I use calcium nitrate. Just a thought.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

That's a good idea, thanks for the suggestion. I had wondered, with the black rot mainly happening on new growths and leaves rather than older ones. But I do feed calcium so I dismissed it initially, maybe I'll try doing extra cal mag with slightly higher pH feeds more often with your observations. Thanks for letting me know 🙂

[@orchidgarden3124]

The Orchid Room my cal mag only has 5% Calcium but my Calcium Nitrate has 19%! That makes it a lot easier to really boost the Ca without having to use much product. The next watering I soak then flush with epsom salt in rain water (ala Ed from Ed’s orchids). The other 2 waterings per month they get MSU fert. with kelp.

[@orchidgarden3124]

The zygos are getting a bit of calcium nitrate added in with 1 MSU fert. so they are getting it at least twice a month at 19%.

[@megank9865]

Hi Annabel, I'd love to see how you make your water gauges. I have a division of a rescue zygo no ID in extra large bark. My mum has the other half, which is also in extra large bark. Mum's division is struggling in her green house (highs of 40+°c in summer and lows averaging around 4°c in winter, sometimes getting into the negatives with frosts). I keep mine indoors with similar conditions as your cool grow corner, except it doesn't get any real breeze, and it's as happy as a pig in mud. We both live within an hours drive of each other in South Australia. I hope your zygo's perk up in the cooler conditions, but the leaf issue is a concern. Good luck 💗🤞

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Thanks! 🙂 I'll make a video on them with some terrible DIY 🤣 From what I'm reading in the comments, it seems people growing zygos successfully often have cooler periods between summer and winter, or are growing them outside with lots of rain and air movement. Maybe that's coincidence, will see if mine picks up outside of the orchid room , where temps stay quite warm year round due to the lights.... if not then maybe I'm not giving enough calcium, that's another comment. If not then I'm stumped 🤦‍♀️🤷‍♀️

[@megank9865]

@@TheOrchidRoom Actually come to think of it, I do have shell grit mixed in with the bark I'm using. I do have mine happily growing indoors, but it doesn't get any special treatment, and we don't rely heavily on heating in winter or cooling in summer. So mine is getting seasonal temperature variations, and a breeze when we open windows and doors. Good luck with your zygo's 🤞

[@trishal2223]

I would love to see how you make the gauges.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Thanks, I'll make a video then! 🙂 My DIY skills are definitely not very professional though! 😂

[@trishal2223]

The Orchid Room they’re better than mine! :)

[@dannisorchidjourney]

My Zygos are definitely my awkward orchids for sure.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

I am with you 😅 They're defiant, I just want them to be happy!

[@aida5891]

Please post the updated on the zygos when you have a conclusion. I have the same issues as you with them. I switched them from semi hydro to bark + moss mix 2 months ago and they seem to be doing better. Zygolum Louisendorf actually bloomed and grew a new growth. That one was not doing anything for the last year, not growing, not getting worst. The change of media seems to be working for now. And I had another hybrid, that was only getting black: the leafs and the new growths. I tried semi hydro and organic media but nothing worked. I gave it away to someone to give it a try.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

I will be sure to post an update, now that I have shown my worst orchids, I really hope they improve! 😂 New approach- shame them into action! But it seems zygos are very hit or miss, some people grow them with apparent ease and they do great. I'm not in that book, and it's good to hear you have had some of the same problems. I hope that doesn't sound bad, because ideally none of us would have these problems with them... If this doesn't work I'm out of ideas. Someone in the comments here grows them very well on his balcony with lots of air movement and rain (think in Australia). But I don't really have a semi sheltered outdoor setup, where they wouldnt get fungal issues or scorched 😥 And half the year in the UK would be too cold for them to be outside anyway 😥🤷‍♀️

[@loho1125]

I keep my Zygopetalum in a bark/course Seramis mix I purchased in a flower shop. What I think is the clue to good growing for me is a big seasonal temperature change. I keep them between 15 degrees C at night and 20-22 degrees in winter. The summer is much warmer, with over 17 degrees nights and about 26 degrees days. It gets a lot of fertilizer, as much as my Cattleya types if not more. I also find it to enjoy a lot of light. It is placed on the floor in front of a south-western exposure window with no shading exept a nepenthes pitcher plant that blocks most of the sun between 13pm and 16pm. Lastly, the upper part of the window over the plant is always tilted in summer and in frost-free winter nights, so a slight airflow is given most times. It does not cool the room down in summer, though, it just prevents the room from heating up over 30 degrees (if it's over 30 degrees outside I usually place the plants in a cool-ish and very shady room) and helps providing a low winter night temperature. The last point is that I do not provide extra humidity. Normally, the summer day humidity is below 40% and the night humidity is above 50%, going up to 70 when there's rain outside and the humid air moves inside through the tilted window. I do not think that this is beneficial on its own, but I would not even think about misting a Zygo ever again (there were "some" fungal problems whennI did that last time). The plant is growing nicely for three seasons now. It produces one new pseudobulb between early spring and mid summer and another one between the end if summer and early winter/late fall most times.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Thanks very much for the really detailed and helpful reply, I really appreciate you taking the time to map out how you grow these and all the conditions they receive. I am hoping the cooler corner will help them out since it sounds like it will be more similar to your conditions, although maybe the humidity may get too high in winter. They have a fan though so hopefully that will help. Will just have to wait and see. Thanks again! 🙂

[@loho1125]

@@TheOrchidRoom I think higher humidity is not bad at all and might be beneficial. I wanted to say that I do not have any ability of increasing humidity without misting and that I would not do that again, so my plant adapted to the humidity given I could have been more percise there😁.

[@michaelmccarthy4077]

"I have problems with my Zygopetalums" That seems to be a common problem. I find they grow best in just sphagnum, at least in Florida. I don't know why, I can maintain the same moisture level (meaning wet all the time) in bark but they don't perform well and eventually flame out. My guess is their roots like a rather acid, non-airy environment because the plant that I've had in the same moss for two years is the biggest and bushiest. Yeah, I get some leaf tip burn and spots on the leaves but it is also hot and humid here and I'm letting them grow outside. Given my climate, though, I think they look pretty good. I really need to repot the big one but I dread doing it because the last time it pitched a fit and dumped the entire root system.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Interesting, you're growing them hotter year round and they're still doing better than mine 😂🤦‍♀️ I don't really know what more to try, other than just leaving them in the corner to live or die at this point 🤦‍♀️🤷‍♀️

[@michaelmccarthy4077]

@@TheOrchidRoom I'm telling you, I tried them in various sizes and combinations of bark, leca (s/h), small lava rock, large perlite, they were never happy in any of them and some died. Sphagnum packed around the roots and they are happy (well, as happy as they can be dealing with Florida heat). At least with sphagnum you can still have them in a self watering setup, though you will have to remember to use plain water every other time you top up.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

@@michaelmccarthy4077 The crinitum has been in bark/moss for a while now, but I was trying it 'normal' wet/dry, because I was clearly failing and thought a more traditional setup was maybe what it wanted.....I never tried pure moss...hmmm. I mean, it makes sense, most people seem to agree they are often semi-terrestrial. And the info I could find on the crinitum said even as an epiphyte, it was often partially buried in leaf litter. Which would be mulchy and mossy I'm guessing. Although the AOS states 'strictly epiphytes, must be grown mounted, may tolerate baskets', which is also confusing! I'll have a rethink if these new growths start going downhill even in the new cooler area and try moss/self-watering!

[@michaelmccarthy4077]

@@TheOrchidRoom I've got a hybrid in a basket but, again, moss. Not a bright idea on my part because I have to water it every day. But I wanted to see if it works, maybe an option for people in cooler climates where moss dries too slow in a pot. Yes, the conflicting information out there is annoying. I've not grown crinitum specifically, but I do know someone in Chicago that used to grow it. She had hers in moss, IIRC.

[@mssoundbites1697]

I have two Zygos. The Acacalis Rhein 'Blue Angel' has so far been a reliable bloomer for me for three years. I keep it in a cool room with bright light, somewhere between Oncidium and Cattleya light but it doesn't seem to like direct sunlight. I have it in an airy mix of small bark, seramis and pumice. The other one, Zygopetalum 'Trozy Blue' is a different story. It lives in the same set up but in three years it hasn't bloomed for me although the foliage and pseudobulbs have been growing strong and healthy and the pot is full of roots. I keep telling it that surely with such fantastic growth it should put out a spike but it isn't talking to me.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Thanks for letting me know! Sounds like you're winning with them, even if Trozy won't spike for you it sounds very healthy! 🙂 I would be happy with any improvement on mine at this point 🤷‍♀️😅

[@lennium100]

Do you plug the top of the inner straw, if the straw gets a drop of water in it , the straw will not be at its original set position giving a false reading.

[@lennium100]

I grow my Zygopetalum outside in just LECA. When they flower I bring them in to a bright window where I display all my flowering orchids. I notice that they by the time they are finished flower they have lost lustre in the leaves and don’t look so good even with a fan moving the air. I cut the flowers and move it back to a rather hot Western facing balcony and two weeks later they have picked up condition of the leaves. When I bring them in for my short winter I notice the same lack of lustrous leaves. I spray every morning in hot weather and they are my least troublesome orchids they are left out on the balcony getting lots of wind and rain they seem to love it.

[@TheOrchidRoom]

I haven't but I haven't been using them that long and hadn't thought about that! 😅 I water from the sides usually, so hopefully they wouldn't get water in, but that's a good idea. Maybe I could just seal the top of the straw with glue and that should do the trick? 🙂

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Thanks for letting me know about the zygos! Do you think the drop in night temps outside had anything to do with it, or just the extra air movement and general outdoor conditions? I could definitely try to grow mine outside but I had lots of fungal and scorching issues on the cymbidiums when they were just outside with no protection from the rain and sun, the cymbs do better in the greenhouse, but very little air movement in there...plus they get routine spider mite invasions, so I feel like that may finish the zygos off 😥 also winters are long here, and lots of freezing temps so they wound have to come in from October- March until risk of frosts had passed. I would love to find a solution indoors 😥

[@lioaramara5418]

I have 4 zygo and the same issues as you with them. I"ll switch them from bark + moss to a mix of pumice ,seramis and a little bit of leca and wait to see what"s happening

[@TheOrchidRoom]

It's frustrating isn't it 😥 I'm happy to be a guinea pig though and try this out first, I'm not totally sure it's the media here, I think it's probably something environmental since I've tried both organic (bark/moss) and inorganic over nearly a 3 year period and I get the same result with each 🤷‍♀️ I do think the mix I've just put it in is probably the most balanced one yet, so maybe that, combined with the cooler temps, will work some magic. If not, I'm stumped 🤦‍♀️🤷‍♀️

[@NinjaOrchids]

I hope the zygos respond to the different temperature location! The leaf issues are annoying ... but they are trying, so 🤞🏼💐

[@TheOrchidRoom]

They drive me nuts because I can't figure them out 😅

[@jessicacarter5606]

Thanks for sharing

[@brendajernigan7642]

Please do a video on your DIY self watering pots.

[@aleksandarhristov6977]

Keep it up with the great videos

[@TheOrchidRoom]

Thanks! 🙂 I'm a little ashamed of the Zygos here, but hopefully it helps to see my badly grown orchids too 🤦‍♀️🙂

[@aleksandarhristov6977]

@@TheOrchidRoom Being unsuccessful in growing something is far more informative then doing something right and not knowing what it is exactly.

[@TrishsOrchidLife]

Gauges? DIY? Why yes please ❤️

[@TheOrchidRoom]

😂 Ok, I'll show off my terrible DIY skills 😂