Methods for Selecting and Mixing Cymbidium sinense Potting Media and Soil Blending Tips

TraditionalcultivationCymbidium sinensemostly uses pond-center mud. In winter, drain the fish pond; take the silt from the center of the pond, dry it in the sun, then chop it into pieces about the size of a thumb and set aside for use. After drying in the sun, pond-center mud has good water absorption and water retention; it neither compacts easily nor breaks down easily, and it has good fertilizing effect. Nowadays, when planting in large potsCymbidium sinensesome still use this material. Moderncultivationsmall potsCymbidium sinensemostly use lightweight hard materials. Such as ceramsite, Puli orchid soil, Japanese orchid stone, volcanic stone, pumice, fern roots (snake wood), dried bark, pond-bank orchid soil, weathered coarse sand and small stones, fired soil, and so on. Some also use sphagnum moss for temporary planting, or as a mixed potting medium, or as a pot-surface covering for protection and decoration. For large-scale planting, some use a mixture of coarse sand, humus soil, sphagnum moss, sawdust, etc., to reduce costs. The above potting media are often selected as mixed potting media. Generally, a single medium is rarely used; instead, adapt to local conditions, use local materials, and rely on one's own experience to prepare a mixed medium suited to one's own habits. (Yan Xueliang)