1 year later

13 years ago

About a year ago I started a thread about using PET fiber as a substitute for sphagnum moss.

I've had this phal for several years, it's been in bark, then tried a semi hydro set up and It alway looked sickly. It's been in this pot for a year with the PET fiber loosely around the roots. I also have a Phal in a clay pot with a 50/50 mix of hydroton and PET fiber and one in a 50/50 mix of bark and PET fiber. Both are doing OK.
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This is Masd. Copper Angel, which was sent to me by Nick. Its in a semi hydro pot with a layer of Hydroton on top to slow down evaporation. It's in my living room window being watered once a week. the second photo is of the inner pot.
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This is Masd. Golden Bells, also sent by Nick. This one is in a glass jar with a layer of Hydroton on the bottom. Also watered once a week, I leave a half inch of water in the bottom of the jar.
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I had a few things that didn't do well in it, Angraecum, Vanilla and Epidendrum. It seems to me that roots don't like to attach to it, which is why I mixed it with other media. What I do like is that it doesn't break down so it will keep some air space in the mix when used with bark. I also like it with plants in baskets to hold some water at the roots and boost humidity a bit. The best thing about it, no fungus gnats.

James

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Comments (8)

jane__ny
13 years ago
Have you gotten any spikes on the Phals? The Masdies look great.

Jane
James _J
Original Author
13 years ago
The phal that is in the mix of PET and bark is flowering. I found it in the trash on my way home from work in NYC. It's large and still had good roots so I think it would have flowered anyway no matter how it was potted.

James
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orchidnick
13 years ago
I placed a number of plants in PET cubes and they seem to be doing as well as the ones in sphagnum moss. I have however not gotten attached to it despite it's obvious advantage. I like the feel of the moss and have continued using it for the majority of plants. I need to go back and closely look at the PET plants, pull them out and look at the roots. This will happen this weekend, I'll report.

Nick
vtandrea
13 years ago
Could someone explain what is a "semi hydro pot"?
terpguy
13 years ago
Andrea, basically imagine a deli container. Now imagine two holes poked in the side about an inch up from the bottom (I grow in s/h but don't have any photos. A simple google search will net you plenty of them). It allows water to pool in the bottom of the pot, often referred to as the reservoir. Since the plant semi sits in water, the term semi hydro is apropos.
orchidnick
13 years ago
I evaluatyed 5 plants that have been in the PET cubes for a year and all have done as least as well as if they were growing in moss or bark. I think it is definitely interchangeable and has the advantage that it does not deteriorate. I have not embraced it as it feels weird, just simply used to the SM or bark and having a hard time switching over.

I still have a whole bunch of the cubes left over and will use them up to see if I can get to like them.

Nick
James _J
Original Author
13 years ago
Nick, I've never been able to grow anything in Sphagnum moss. At most I use it sometimes in baskets or a thin layer on top of other mixes to keep them damp longer. I noticed that the plants you sent me were wrapped in sphagnum that is very different than the stuff available around here. Yours was bright and fluffy, the stuff I have is much darker, smaller strands and dead looking in comparison, maybe thats why it doesn't work for me?

I like that the PET dries faster than sphag, also it is easy to re wet, unlike sphag which repels water if it dries to much. I wish it came in a different color and shape, I think round or cheese doodle shape in green would be better.

Andrea, there are a few different ways to do semi hyrdro. You can see the pots I use in the photos above, there is a clear pot with a wick in the bottom running thru the media, that pot sits inside a taller pot which has a water reservoir at the bottom. The last photo is just a jar with clay pellets at the bottom to create a reservoir. Basically you use an inorganic media like Hydroten (clay pellets) that draws water from a reservoir by capillary action which keeps the roots wet but also allows air flow.
orchidnick
13 years ago
Are you sure you have SM? Sounds like 'Brown Moss' which does not work for me. SM comes from different parts of the world, new Zealand reputed to be the best. Then they grade it 1 to 5. Check this outfit out, they'll mail you a small package of good quality stuff. AAA is plenty good enough AAAAA is better but expensive.

http://www.calwesttropical.com/index.php/categories/sphagnum-moss

Certain plants love SM others die in it. All depends how often you water. It should never get dry as it takes a 10 minute soaking to get it wet again.

Nick