Orchid mixed-type potting medium Songliwang bark granules, general-purpose nutrient soil for Spring Orchid, Huilan, Jianlan and Cymbidium
Promote Chinese orchid culture, spread orchid knowledge
The traditional cultivation of Chinese orchids has always been an art of promoting orchid growth by optimizing the environment for symbiotic fungi. As long as you can create an environment favorable to the growth of orchid fungi and inhibitory to harmful fungi, the orchids will grow well; the growing environment of wild orchids provides us with an optimized model favorable to orchid fungus growth. Order today and get carbendazim and rooting powder free; 4 jin (11.2 L) for 49.8 yuan with free shipping, 8 jin (22.4 L) for 99.6 yuan with free shipping!
Many orchid growers have gone up the mountains to dig or collect orchids, and you will find that luxuriant orchids grow in mountain forests where pine and chestnut trees grow together, in a thick, loose, fertile substrate layer.
So what is this layer of substrate?
This layer of substrate is formed from pine bark, pine needles, chestnut bark and chestnut leaves that fall, pile up, rot and ferment. This substrate layer is loose and fertile, rich in organic matter, with good air permeability and drainage, suitable for the growth of orchid fungi, and is the growing substrate that orchids choose for themselves in nature.
This potting medium is made precisely on the basis of this characteristic of orchids, using aged pine bark and chestnut bark that are machine-pelleted, processed and then fully fermented. It is rich in orchid fungi, has good air permeability, uniform granules, sufficient fertility, is clean and hygienic, and easy to use. The granule size is about 0.5-2 cm, and powder below 0.5 cm has been screened out. The introduction of this product has overturned traditional orchid-growing concepts and has also changed the situation in which many orchid growers across the country found orchids difficult to grow.
Most orchid potting media on the market do not contain chestnut bark. To save time, they are not fermented or are carbonized at high temperature (bark is carbonized through heat radiation; the carbonization process removes organic matter and no fermentation has taken place, so what you buy back is carbon, not organic orchid potting medium - you can check Baidu for details). Powder is not screened out and is sold to you together with the powder. Some are also mixed with cheap white perlite as a filler, which has poor air permeability, decomposes quickly, has a short service life, is not clean, and easily breeds pathogens. Orchids grown in this kind of medium very easily suffer root rot, blackened leaves, yellowing or death. You should pay attention to identifying it and use it with caution!
Suitable for orchids, Clivia, snake plants, Dendrobium officinale, Phalaenopsis and other fleshy-rooted plants and orchid family plants. Ready to use straight from the bag, no need to mix with other media, no need to replace for about 3 years, no need to fertilize. It can also be mixed with hard media such as gravel, Kanuma soil, expanded clay pellets and fired clay soil. It can effectively solve problems such as orchid root rot, blackened leaves and yellowing, make orchids rapidly grow crystal roots, increase the rate of orchid shoot production and flowering, and make growing orchids easy.
Portion concept:
Super-value packaged shipping 11.2 L, about 4 jin, can fill more than 22 500 ml mineral water bottles; super-value large bag 22.4 L, about 8 jin, can fill about 45 500 ml mineral water bottles
Planting effect display:
By default, express delivery is via STO Express or TTK Express. For Xinjiang, Tibet, Qinghai, Inner Mongolia and Ningxia, postal ordinary mail is used, and you need to pick up the parcel yourself at the post office. If you have special requirements, please contact customer service!
Detailed explanation of "the symbiotic relationship between orchids and fungi"
I. Formation of orchid mycorrhizae and their physiological functions
Forest vegetation is the native habitat of orchid family plants, and the mycorrhizae formed by orchid-fungus symbiosis are commonly found in forest soil. Most of the symbiotic fungi in mycorrhizae belong to the Deuteromycetes and Basidiomycetes. They have a great influence on the growth of orchid family plants. Orchid seeds are tiny, like dust, and store very little nutrients of their own. This is not enough to supply seed germination and growth into seedlings, and it also takes a long time. However, because symbiotic fungi exist in the forest, fungal hyphae can quickly penetrate the epidermis of those better-developed orchid seeds, enter the embryo cells, form hyphal masses in the cell cavities, and continuously digest and release nutrients to supply the smooth growth of embryos and seedlings. Orchids under artificial domestication or cultivation do not go through the seed-to-seedling stage, and mainly reproduce by dividing vegetative plants. However, symbiotic fungi combine with orchid roots to form mycorrhizae, which is very important for orchid growth and development.
1. Formation and characteristics of mycorrhizae
Whether wild-collected orchids or home-grown orchids, their orchid roots already have symbiotic mycorrhizal fungi, with hyphae and spores attached to the root surface. If native soil is present, there will be even more hyphae and spores in the soil. Orchid mycorrhizal fungi are endophytic fungi. When new roots emerge and elongate, the surface secretes some organic substances that stimulate and attract hyphae and spores in the soil near the rhizosphere of old mycorrhizae to germinate germ tubes (the germ tubes then grow into hyphae) and extend toward the surface of the new roots. In addition, hyphae near the rhizosphere have root tropism. After the hyphae contact the roots, they can pass through the root epidermis and enter the cortical cells, forming intracellular hyphae in the cell cavities. Intracellular hyphae can also pass from one cell to another. Intracellular hyphae often appear in the shape of knots or coils, collectively called hyphal masses. The hyphae do not infect the orchid root growth cone (crystal head), so the orchid roots maintain vigorous growth ability. The hyphae on the root surface are relatively sparse and mainly serve to absorb water and minerals and produce conidia. No obvious change can be seen on the mycorrhizal surface. Under a microscope, extraradical hyphae can be seen. The hyphae have septa, and there are hyphal masses in the cortical cells. This is where orchids and fungi exchange nutrients.
2. Physiological functions of mycorrhizae
(1) Absorption function. Extraradical hyphae of mycorrhizae directly absorb soil water, and their absorption and transport efficiency for mineral elements is very high, especially for organic phosphorus and sparingly soluble phosphorus. This is mainly caused by the presence of mycorrhizae and the increased secretion of substances such as acid phosphatase and phosphoesterase, increased activity, or changes in soil pH.
(2) Synthesis function. Intracellular hyphal masses produce some active substances such as enzyme precursors, coenzymes and plant growth regulators that participate in the growth and development process of orchid plants. Amylase produced by mycorrhizal fungi can increase the carbohydrate utilization level of orchid seedlings.
(3) Storage and transformation function of nutrients. During the formation of mycorrhizae, mycorrhizal fungi continuously use the photosynthetic products of orchid plants for growth, forming hyphal masses in root cortical cells and accumulating and storing a large amount of nutrients. In the early stage of mycorrhizal formation, both mycorrhizal fungi and orchid plants compete for nutrients for their own growth, and both grow very slowly. As the orchid plants grow vigorously, the photosynthetic organs expand and the amount of photosynthetic products increases, the mycorrhizal fungi have the material basis for expansion, the hyphae extend rapidly, and intracellular hyphal masses emerge in large numbers. When orchid plants are in the stage of simultaneous vegetative growth and reproductive growth or the flowering stage, and the orchid plants need a large amount of nutrients, various transforming enzymes in the mycorrhizae become active, causing large numbers of intracellular hyphal masses to dissolve and continuously release nutrients such as carbohydrates, amino acids, hormones and minerals to supply the needs of orchid plant growth and development. Therefore, mycorrhizae are the storage reservoir and transformer of nutrients within orchid plants.
(4) The presence of mycorrhizae can enhance the resistance of orchid plants to certain root diseases. After newly emerged orchid roots are infected by mycorrhizal fungi for the first time and establish a symbiotic relationship, it is difficult for other pathogenic fungi to invade the mycorrhizae again and establish a parasitic relationship. Therefore, well-developed mycorrhizal root systems are robust and full of vitality, and their resistance to pathogens is strong. Conversely, after pathogenic fungi invade the cortex of orchid roots, it is difficult for mycorrhizal fungi to invade again. In addition, orchid roots that are physiologically aged or whose mycorrhizal fungi have declined are easily attacked by pathogenic fungi in the soil.
II. Main conditions affecting the formation and development of mycorrhizae
1. The roots, stems and leaves of orchid plants should be complete, robust and disease-free
In the orchid-fungus symbiotic relationship, the orchid plant is the host and nutrient provider for the mycorrhizal fungi. Only when the orchid plant is robust and complete, grows and develops normally, and has active metabolism can it provide sufficient nutrients for the development of the symbiotic fungi. If the orchid plant is incomplete and weak, new roots develop slowly, or it is even infected by disease, mycorrhizae are difficult to form, and even already formed mycorrhizae will decline.
2. Orchid plants must have mycorrhizal fungi and effective propagules
Mycorrhizal fungi exist in the mycorrhizae of orchid plants. Orchids and fungi are inseparable, just like lactic acid bacteria and bifidobacteria (beneficial bacteria) in the human large intestine, which live together with other harmful bacteria in the large intestine throughout human life, forming a microecological relationship among fungal species in which one waxes as the other wanes and one wanes as the other waxes. When beneficial bacteria are dominant, they can synthesize many beneficial substances, help digestion and inhibit the growth of harmful bacteria, which is very beneficial to human health. When harmful bacteria are dominant, the human body is in a diseased state. Similarly, as people divide and propagate orchid plants, the mycorrhizae enter the new environment along with the planting stock, and the hyphae and spores produced by mycorrhizal fungi on the root surface are scattered in the soil, preparing a fungal source for infecting new roots. When transplanting orchids, the newly prepared substrate may also contain propagules of mycorrhizal fungi and become an infection source.
Hyphae and spores are the propagules of mycorrhizal fungi. They must be relatively close to young roots and have the opportunity to contact the root area. Only when a certain carbon source (organic matter) is supplied in the soil can the hyphae maintain vitality and infect young roots.
3. Suitable environmental conditions are required
Suitable light, temperature, humidity, air and soil fertility are necessary for mycorrhizal development. Suitable light intensity is conducive to improving the photosynthetic efficiency of orchid plants and increasing the accumulation of carbohydrates, thereby also improving the nutrient supply to mycorrhizae; temperature mainly refers to soil temperature, and stability is emphasized, generally stable at around 20°C, with a variation range not exceeding 5 degrees, which is more suitable for the normal progress of mycorrhizal physiological metabolism; humidity and air in the soil are in conflict. When soil water content is high, air is expelled from the soil, and mycorrhizal respiration is affected, because mycorrhizal fungi are aerobic. If waterlogging lasts too long, mycorrhizae are poisoned, large numbers of mycorrhizal fungi die, and the symbiotic relationship disintegrates. It is generally believed that maintaining soil water content at 30-50% can better handle the contradiction between air and water; soil fertility is composed of comprehensive factors. With high organic matter content, various mineral elements are necessarily abundant, but excessive nitrogen fertilizer is unfavorable to the growth of mycorrhizal fungi. Maintaining pH at around 6 is relatively suitable.
III. Attach importance to the cultivation of mycorrhizae
1. Prepare a substrate suitable for mycorrhizal development to create a good ecological environment for orchid-fungus symbiosis. The orchid-growing substrate should be loose and breathable, with strong drainage and water retention capacity, rich in organic nutrients, stable in temperature and fertility, clean and free of pathogenic fungi and nematode infection, and the soil pH should be slightly acidic. Such a substrate environment better coordinates the contradictions among water, air, temperature and fertilizer, and is beneficial both to orchid root growth and to the development of mycorrhizal fungi. In addition, when planting orchids, mixing in a small amount of the original substrate is equivalent to introducing propagules of symbiotic fungi, which is conducive to the invasion of new roots by mycorrhizal fungi as soon as possible and the reinfection of old roots. However, note that the orchid seedlings and the original substrate must not have previously suffered disease.
2. When transplanting orchid seedlings, in addition to the orchid seedlings themselves being robust and their stems and leaves complete, also carefully remove rotten roots, hollow roots, and discolored and aged roots, and carefully protect every orchid root and crown root (crystal head). Under normal circumstances, as long as the orchid seedlings are growing normally, when repotting and dividing seedlings, the divided seedlings can be rinsed with tap water, dried and then transplanted, and chemical disinfectants should be used as little as possible. For orchid seedlings that really must be disinfected, chemical agents should preferably be systemic varieties as little as possible, so as to reduce harm to mycorrhizal fungi.
3. Health cultivation, scientific management, and maintaining the healthy development of the orchid-fungus symbiotic relationship. The purpose of management is to properly regulate the changes and balance among ecological factors such as light, temperature, water, air and fertilizer, and to guide the overall effect according to circumstances, so as to fully satisfy the ecological habits of orchids and fungi and promote the common prosperity of orchid and fungus symbiosis.
In natural forest ecosystems, with the vastness of heaven and earth and the evolution of all things, the years have created the convergence of ecological habits between the two species, orchid and fungus, the complementarity of their physiological needs, and the dependence of their life existence. For example: orchid roots and mycorrhizal fungi are both aerobic and both need sufficient oxygen; both need stable soil temperature; both require soil pH to be slightly acidic; both require soil moisture that is moist but not wet; both require a structure that regulates soil solution concentration; and both require suitable light intensity to ensure an adequate supply of photosynthetic products, etc.
Orchid Bar, your good teacher on the road of growing orchids. If the orchid knowledge we publish has helped you, we hope you can give it a like or click share in the upper right corner to help more people! After following this official account "Orchid Bar", you can answer your questions about orchids online. Send the number "8" to buy orchids, send the number "6" to sell orchids, and send the number "1" to sell orchids on consignment!