I'm a bit confused by your questions.....

1. I've never heard that orchid roots need light. Maybe someone else can answer that question.

2. If your phal has flowers, many people recommend against fertilizing it. Instead, use only water and fertilize when it is out of bloom. (sometimes the blooms drop off if you fertilize while it's in bloom)

3. by soil.... can you be more specific about what it's potted in? is it really soil/dirt? (it should not be) or is it tree bark? or moss? Phals like to stay moist, but not soggy. Water it throughly when it starts to dry out and then don't water it again until it begins to get dry. (don't let it dry out completely through) if it's potted in moss it will need less watering then if it's potted in bark. (the moss retains the water longer)

hope this helps.

Debbie

Hi greekman,

Welcome to the addiction! (It always starts with just one...) Anyways, Debbie brought up some good points and I'd like to add a few notions.

1) This is true of only some orchids, generally ones such as the Ghost Orchid that do not have leaves to process light. However, the odds are that you have one of the more common tropical orchids, probably a Phalaenopsis, also known as a moth orchid. You can use just about any kind of pot you wish, as long as it has drainage holes. Some people swear by transparent pots, since it allows them to see the condition of the roots, though they only see half the picture, with the middle of the root ball not visible because of the potting media. Ive tried identical plants in transparent or green plastic pots. No difference whatsoever. I tend to use whatever's easily accessible at repotting time.

2) Fertilizer is kind of like a vitamin for your orchid - it helps it grow nice vigorous roots and leaves, or a stronger spike and nicer buds. Once it's in flower, why fertilize? Fertilizer is in effect mineral salts. If the plant doesn't use it, fertilizer becomes excess mineral salts and can end up as a deposit on the roots, which can choke them. When you do fertilize, do so often (two out of three waterings, for example), but very weakly, about a quarter of the recommended strength. And only fertilize when the plant is in active growth. You can use just about any fertilizer - a 20-20-20 is like a daily multivitamin, a higher first number is good for promoting vegetative growth (roots and leaves) and a high middle number is good for blooms.

3) To let dry or not to let dry, that is the question... When an orchid is in optimal growing conditions, you shouldn't let it get completely dry. Note I said "optimal growing conditions" - this plant has been through a lot, going from its nice little greenhouse, then to a store where the salespeople might not have known how to care for it and then to your house. This is assuming the greenhouse was near the store; in a lot of cases now, these plants have come to you from Asia. Its light, humidity and temperature needs have likely not been met for a little while, so it's no surprise that the flowers don't look so hot. First, no matter what you do, orchid flowers will not plump back up. Once they're done, they're done. What you have to do is give it some TLC so that the flowers that are still in good shape or not too old (on a Phalaenopsis, for example, each flower lasts an average of 12 weeks) can last as long as possible, and so that it will rebloom. For this, we would need to know what kind of orchid it is. IÂm enclosing a link below to culture sheets produced by the American Orchid Society. You can take a quick look at them  there are line drawings which should help you identify your orchid and even some growing tips. Knowing what you have, we can then go into more detail about how you should grow it.

I hope that the above novella helps. (I really try to be concise, but it never works.)

Julie

My take on those questions.

1) Any pot with drainage will do. I use the see-through pots as available.

2) I fertilize weakly-weekly, year round except for plants getting a dry winter rest. A Phal does not get a dry winter rest. I use even low number fert.

3) If you watered yesterday, it is fine that it is still wet. Depending on weather and what the plant is potted in it may be a week before you water again.

What is the plant potted in? Can you describe it? Where did you get the orchid?

many thanks Debbie,Julie and richardol for your kind help.
I have 10 orchids, all are in see-through 4,5 inches pot with many holes in the base, and most have tree bark soil,exept one Phalaenopsis has moss or turf ( keeps moist longer than others, today I put out of the pot and the soil was very moist) her flowers are n't looking healthy like the others and the reason I think is the soil keeping much mois, I think that I must transplant in a 5 inch pot adding what material to minimize the moisture of the soil??
I got those orchids from plant traders in Athens, but I am looking for a reliable grower with many species, any help welcomed with pleasure.
many thanks
John

Since many orchids grow on trees, the thinking is that their roots will benefit from the light. I grow in both dark plastic pots and clear plastic pots. The orchids grown in either one seem to thrive.

Hi John,

Careful of going into a 5-inch pot - the more potting media you have, the longer it takes to dry. You'd generally want to keep your plant in the smallest pot that will accommodate its roots. To minimize the "moistness" of the media, you need to have less media and for it to be airier. Many of my pots, for example, have styrofoam chips in the bottom half of the pot, with the top filled with media. This dries pretty quickly. Or, as you've observed, you can transfer your plant to a bark mix which dries much quicker and seems to be better for your growing conditions.

As for vendors in your area... I checked the Orchid Mall, which has a list of orchid vendors around the world, but they did not have any listed for Greece. Your best bet might be to try to find an orchid society in Greece. They'd likely know who's good and even provide an opportunity for you to get plants, either from other members or through group orders from foreign vendors. There is one listed in Crete, but their website does not seem to be active. Perhaps you'd have better luck being on the ground.

Julie

You have great advice from everyone here. I would like to second Julie's suggestion to read the AOS culture sheets.

Also check out the Canadian Orchid Congress sheets, which deal specifically with the question of phal roots and repotting.

Your plant to repot into a 5" pot: A 5-inch pot may be too big. It very probably is too big if the roots on your phal have been compromised by being too moist. Also, medium that stays too wet is a sign of a too-big pot.

You need *the smallest size of pot that will just fit the healthy roots*.

Take your phal out of its pot, clean off the old medium and then choose the pot for it after you see what the roots are like.

Reading is the quickest way to pick the best minds of what they know on any subject.

many thanks to all of you for your great advice.
I am very happy dealing as amateur with those beautifull orchid plants and to contact with very interesting people like you in this forum.
many thanks
John