Sphag in paph multifloral mix??

[Marco]

Well I've transferred mostly all of my paph into aircone with 3 chc/1 hydroton/5 charcoal/.5 diatomite with a 1tsp to .5 tsp limestone, depending on potsize for those that need it, from s/h with primeagra. The potting medium dries completely out on a daily basis. I don't have the luxury of watering everday so I put a layer of sphag as a top dressing and it seems to help on the moisture retention a bit. I was wondering if this layer of sphag would make the mix to acidic for multiflorals?

 

[gore42]

I don't think it will make it too acidic, but there may be an increased chance of crown rot, if the moss doesnt dry out very quickly. I guess that will depend on your conditions.

Nice thing about a good, fast drying mix like that is that you can water more frequently, which helps the plants grow faster, in my experience.

Also, although the CHC might appear dry, it is probably not really drying out every day, unless you water pretty lightly. CHC soaks up water pretty quickly, and althoug the surface may appear to dry out, if you squeeze the stuff, water may still drip out.

- Matt

 

[Marco]

Matt - I would love to water on a daily basis but thats going to have to wait a bit . The inside of the pot is dry too I have a bamboo skewer in all the aircones. I don't water until the skewer is somewhat dry. But not bone dry (I never understood this when I first started) And yeah when I came home the pots were dry. I have fans running 24/7 and my grow area/room has been peaking at about 80F now that its been getting colder its been peaking at like 75F. With the sphag on top it gives me 2 days until I have to water again

 

[Rick]

See If you can promote some live moss growth. It would probably have the same effect on pH, but you do have some form of lime in the mix to buffer, and it doesn't break down like the dead sphag would.