Gardening Sept – 21
Dear Orchid Doc:
The older canes of my Dendrobiums are growing small plants. Can I take them off and plant them?
— JB
Dear JB,
When you see your older Dendrobium canes growing lots of plantlets (keikis), oftentimes it means the orchid isn’t getting enough light, and might be close to death. There’s an adage that says: “When plantain want dead, it shoot.”
Pot these plantlets when they develop strong roots.
Dear Orchid Doc:
How do I know when to repot my orchids?
— Morris
Dear Morris
Firstly, if you oversize your pots when planting, your plants will concentrate on growing roots to fill the pot before they start to grow upwards. That said, you need to repot in any of the following situations:
1 The medium has turned into mush, which will cause fungus.
2 The roots have walked out of the pot.
3 Plant keeps toppling over as it’s top-heavy.
Finally, always use a pot one size above the older pot or according to the size of the roots.
