Have you ever been to a gardening workshop where one attendee seems WAY too into it, asking a million questions, furiously taking notes, and snapping pictures of every little thing?  Well, perhaps that weirdo is a gardening blogger, because I’m sure that’s exactly how my classmates at a recent orchid workshop would have described me.  In my last post, I covered my notes on basic orchid care from the workshop;  in this post, I’ll share my step-by-step notes (and pictures) on repotting orchids.

The timing of repotting your orchid depends on what type of orchid it is (see my last post), but for the most common type of orchids, moth orchids, you’ll want to repot when the roots are starting to grow out of the pot or the planting medium has started to break down to where it holds too much water.  Don’t repot until after the orchid has finished blooming or you could stress the plant, causing it to drop its blooms.

(Note: You may see blooms on some of the orchids we were replanting in my pictures because, hey, an orchid workshop was scheduled and they promised some repotting, but it’s always best wait until the blooms are done.)

To get started, you’ll need to gather your supplies: new growing medium, a slightly larger pot (if needed), and sharp pruners.  Make sure you have a large counter or tabletop space to work on — you may even consider working in a shallow tub to make clean up easy.  It’s probably easiest to buy a bag of ready-to-use growing medium sold at retailers, but if you want to make your own, the horticulturist recommended this mix:

Orchid planting medium:
4 parts orchid bark (medium size)
2 parts granulated charcoal
Dash of perlite
Dash of rice hulls

Now that we have our supplies ready to go, let’s start repotting!

Step 1: Remove the orchid from its existing container.  Grab it by the base of the plant and gently pull it out of the pot.  Depending on how root bound it is, it could resist a little bit.  Orchids are a surprisingly hardy plant, so you don’t have to worry about being overly gentle with it while you’re repotting.

Step 2: Loosen the roots and get rid of any existing growing medium.  Pull the roots down to keep them from growing in a circle.

Step 3: Clip off any dead or dying roots.  An easy tell is if they are shriveled, mushy or feel like an empty straw.

Step 4: Place roots back in the pot, or if they won’t fit in the existing pot, a slightly larger new one.  Don’t go too big, though, as orchid roots like to be cozy.

Step 5: Fill the pot with the bark mixture, a handful at time.  Every couple of handfuls, tap the bottom of the pot on your counter to help settle the bark in place.  Keep the base held at about the top of the pot, and add bark until the pot is full.

Step 6: Press down on the top of the bark to get it all snuggled in place.  An easy test to tell if it is potted well is to pick up the orchid by the base of the plant and see if the container and bark stay in place while you lift it.

Step 7: Water well and return to your normal orchid care routine!

There you have it…7 easy steps to repotting an orchid.  Ready to repot your orchids?  Let me know how it goes!