What's your favorite phrag media

[cnycharles]

For plants that'll be in an ebb and flood system? Unpacking some apartment things and I have my Dutch leach tray from before, things were starting to work well with timed watering but that was a few moves ago.

I have a few new different phrags, species and hybrids and they all have different media from different growers. Many look fine but things like mostly sphagnum and large pots with bark I don't think will tolerate things the same. I would rather pulse water at least every other day. At the moment it's on one of the living room radiators which runs fairly often. Room is coolish near window when radiator isn't running. Water will mostly be ro with small amounts of nutrients in it, mostly Klite, calcium nitrate, kelp max or mag sulfate (not necessarily all at the same time)

I realize some phrags may not want as much watering as others, and I will have some other very moist loving orchids in there; when they don't need water I'll just lift them out. I'll also likely make another tub or two that have other orchids and water the same, just lift up ones that don't need watering on a particular day.
I know of the concerns about disease spreading through water but periodically I'll dump peroxide into the reservoir. Watering from underneath will help limit wet above parts. Instead of the peroxide I'll likely be trialling inocucor first to see how that works

Thanks!

I have my thoughts but I'd like to hear everyone else's as well

 

[TyroneGenade]

I would repot them all into the same medium to make life easier.

I'm all for LECA/Hydroton because I use it... I got a hybrid seedling last year that I put into the LECA and it seems happy. It sending out new leaves.

 

[gonewild]

Yes, some form of Leca.

 

[NYEric]

Sphagnum may be too wet for that method. May be OK on top of Leca. Most vendors don't grow in hydro so..

 

[cnycharles]

I had leca but threw it away after it didn't work for my phals and s/h (my apartment too cold in upstate winter)

 

[ALToronto]

Lava rock, LECA or a combination of both. I'm a compulsive overwaterer. I usually end up with live moss growing on top.

 

[abax]

Do you think the large Orchiata might stay too wet for the
ebb and flow?

 

[orchideya]

I use for phrags mix of small bark with large sponge rock and some river stones. In my tank I watered them once a week, now out of tank - twice a week.

LECA and every day watering would be a real burden on me, I still shiver when remember my vandas in glass vases that needed every day spraying. Now they are in clay pots with chc and get watered once a week. My phals in sphagnum and plastic pots are watered once in 2 weeks

 

[Brabantia]

My Phrag. mix: 1/3 bark (french pin bark)1/3 CHC 1/3 hydroponic clay balls + mixed in this substrate crushed oyster shell: a small teaspoon for a pot of 4".