bessae

[dodidoki]

slowly i have enogh with bessaes, all are climbing upwards and i must repot them time by time, because new roots die in the open air....

 

[richgarrison]

i had been having some amount of luck with the tray method where i just wire down new climbers into the media as they start to show root growth

 

[mrhappyrotter]

I'm not super fond of climbers either, but I do make an exception for P. besseae (and some of its hybrids).

At least some of the cultivated dalessandroi breeding lines tend to stay compact and are not as prone to climbing. I find that typically also applies to hybrids of dalessandroi as well. So, you might try that if you can get your hands on some.

I've a Phragmipedium Karame (Jersey x besseae) that is not a terribly aggressive climber and which otherwise mostly just looks like a really nice quality besseae. I think a hybrid like that could fit the bill if you're not a species purist (not that there's anything wrong with that).

As for climbing besseae (and besseae hybrids), my strategies are...

Use pots that are a bit wide and shallow, something to give me enough room that I can achor down the escaping growths so that they can develop roots. Or I use extra deep pots and don't fill them up to the rim, leave lots of vertical space for the new growths to develop.

And then, when new growths ultimately do make their great escape, I capture them individually using small diameter pots or even small plastic cups. I fill them with moss or media and keep that wet to encourage root growth, and then once the growths are large enough and have some roots of their own, I sever them and pot them up indvidiually.

 

[NYEric]

Either raise the level of the media or air-layer and then replant the rooted new growths.

 

[BrucherT]

slowly i have enogh with bessaes, all are climbing upwards and i must repot them time by time, because new roots die in the open air....
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What about Tom’s tray method?