Saving orchids with marbles

ORCHID CHRONICLES:

You may think I’ve lost my marbles after this post. I saw a video about a lady who saves sickly orchids by temporarily planting them in pots of marbles. In theory, there is more air in and around the marbles allowing th...e roots to dry out and grow normally. I have an orchid, the Scarlett O’Hare sisters, (remember them?) that had two plants in one pot. When I split them into separate pots, one of the plants has struggled, so I decided to try out the marble technique. I pulled her out of her pot, pulled moist soil away from her roots and RE-potted her in a bowl of marbles. Strangely, I have to water her more because the roots dry out so quickly in the marbles. But after a few short weeks, she has new roots growing and she is sending out a new shoot. She’s ready for repotting again in normal orchid soil with her new healthy roots. 

In the two pictures shown here: 1) Scarlet O’Hare is planted in the marbles, 2) I moved some of the marbles aside so you could see the new root growth. This is a strange technique, but I’ll be darned, IT WORKS! 

 

Ironic isn’t it: As I lose my marbles, but I’m collecting them and saving my orchids.

 

One good marble deserves another I suppose.