Orchid potting medium matters: sharing my orchid-growing experience

Potting medium is one of theorchid'sfoods, and it is thefoundation of growing orchids. With a good potting medium,growing orchidsis more than half successful; the importance of potting medium is self-evident. Orchid growers all attach great importance and attention to potting medium, and their evaluations of potting medium differ greatly - everyone has his own reasons, and every wife has her own reasons. The choice of potting medium is extremely varied - like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea, each showing his own special powers. Today's potting media, from hard to soft, from large to small, from traditional to modern, are all kinds and varieties - one could say the categories are complete and everything is available.
        No matter what the potting medium is, and no matter what characteristics it has, all potting media share the common trait of changing after absorbing water from wet - damp - moist - dry - parched. From this common trait of change after potting medium absorbs water, it is easy to evaluate and judge the differences and quality of potting media.
        A potting medium that is good in my view should be "two long, one short." The cycle from wet to parched should be long, the time from damp to moist to dry should be long, and the time from wet to damp should be short. If the two "long" periods are long, then the moist period is also long, and the potting medium is excellent; otherwise, the potting medium is poor.
        For a potting medium to meet good standards, it should have five characteristics:
        First, granular structure. No matter the size of the potting medium, even extremely fine particles must be granular; the granules must be naturally or spontaneously formed and will not dissolve after watering, so that the medium is loose and breathable.
        Second, water absorption must be fast. Very dry potting medium can absorb water quickly, and absorption is even; after potting, there will be no water channels or situations of wet outside and dry inside, or wet top and dry bottom, and dry cultivation can be carried out.
        Third, drainage must be fast. After the potting medium is fully saturated with water, excess water must be able to drain out quickly, so as to meet the requirement of a short change time from wet to damp. Watering also becomes simple, and orchids are no longer afraid of rain.
        Fourth, water retention must be good. Whether the water retention performance of the potting medium is good or bad determines whether the potting medium is good or bad. If the water retention performance of the potting medium is good, then the time from damp to moist to dry will be long.
        Fifth, it must have natural nutrients, trace elements and minerals, etc.
        A potting medium that simultaneously possesses all five characteristics can only be found in soil. Since I began growing orchids, I have been searching painstakingly - going to the mountains to seek orchids, to orchid farmers' homes to look at orchids, to orchid friends' places to visit orchids, and besides orchids, it was all about potting medium. Paying attention everywhere and spending great effort, still I wore out iron shoes in vain searching. In the autumn of 2003, after my orchid friend accidentally discovered "Lazy Man's Soil," I felt as if I had obtained a treasure - truly, it came without any effort at all. Lazy Man's Soil is truly magical and possesses the five characteristics of a good potting medium. After this soil is sifted with a No. 60 sieve to remove powder, it is all granular structure of varying sizes; the granules do not dissolve in water, and it is very loose and breathable. After the potted soil dries, a hand can be inserted into the orchid pot. Very dry Lazy Man's Soil absorbs water quickly, and when absorbing water there is a squeaking sound. Watching Lazy Man's Soil absorb water in a transparent cup, the water descends layer by layer, the boundary between dry and wet is clear, and water absorption is very even; watching Lazy Man's Soil absorb water is also a kind of enjoyment. After Lazy Man's Soil is fully saturated with water, no matter how much water you pour, it can drain out very quickly; its change time from wet to damp is about 3---4 hours, comparable to granular potting media. Lazy Man's Soil has particularly excellent water retention performance, and the moist state lasts a long time. During the high-temperature period in summer, small pots grown with Lazy Man's Soil are watered once every 7---8 days, while others are watered once every 10 days or more. Lazy Man's Soil is humus soil and has natural nutrients, trace elements and minerals. Lazy Man's Soil also has another characteristic: not even an inch of grass grows in it - truly a wondrous soil. Now I use Lazy Man's Soil entirely to plant orchids, with no need to fertilize and no need to spray pesticides, simple and easy,and the orchid plantsgrow well, enjoying the happiness that Lazy Man's Soil brings.
        In the selection of potting medium, I have gone through many choices, used many potting media, and had lessons such as not paying attention to potting medium, copying others blindly, blindly following trends, focusing only on looseness and breathability while neglecting other aspects. Regarding the selection of potting medium, please pay attention to four points.
        1. The potting medium must suit the orchid-growing environment and management style. Nowadays there are many kinds of potting media, each with its own performance, strengths and shortcomings. No matter what, orchids will adapt, but it may not suit or adapt to you. A potting medium that others consider good may not necessarily be good for you. The selection of potting medium must proceed from the reality of the orchid-growing environment and be determined according to your own management style. For natural-style cultivation on a balcony, with strong light, good ventilation and low humidity, the potting medium is required to have good water retention; otherwise it will only increase the workload of watering and increase risk. If you like to water and have time to water, choose a potting medium with good drainage and average water retention; in this way you can water frequently.
        2. Have a comprehensive understanding of the potting medium. After selecting and purchasing the potting medium, do not rush to pot. You must personally test the potting medium's water absorption, drainage and water retention performance, and comprehensively understand its performance so as to have a clear idea in mind; you cannot just listen to orchid friends and read introductions in books. Although they may all be granules or soil, their performance may differ due to various reasons. Even the soil from the same mountain differs in performance: the soil from the mountaintop differs from the soil from the mountainside, the soil on the shady side differs from the soil on the sunny side, and the soil in shallow layers differs from the soil in deep layers. This is a problem that most orchid friends easily overlook.
        3. Pay attention to the moisture-retention performance of the potting medium. At present, in the selection of potting medium, there is a deviation that emphasizes looseness and drainage performance while neglecting water retention and moisture retention performance. If the water retention and moisture retention performance of the potting medium are poor, the change time from wet to parched is very short, which not only affects the orchidflower'sgrowth and adds risk, but also sharply increases the workload of watering.
        4. Do not change potting medium frequently. Everyone has this mentality: as long as they hear of a good potting medium, they all want to try it; and when some problems appear in the process of growing orchids, the first thing considered is to find the cause in the potting medium. Impatient people often change potting medium - this month granules, next month a mix, the month after that soil - and the result can only be that the orchid plants are tormented until they become weak, small and dead. Orchids will adapt to any potting medium; the only difference is the length of time needed to adapt. What we need to do is adopt targeted management methods according to the performance of the potting medium, make the best of the advantages and avoid the disadvantages, pursue the benefits and avoid the harms, and not often resort to the method of changing potting medium.