The Dendrobium is very popular with orchid gardeners because it does not require any capricious care for its magnificent flowers. The grape orchid should only be repotted every 2 to 3 years in order to preserve its vitality and ability to bloom. This guide shows you how to do it right.
How should you repot a Dendrobium orchid?
To repot a Dendrobium orchid professionally, you should do it outside of the flowering period, choose a transparent pot with a larger diameter, use loose pine bark substrate and clay granules as drainage. Carefully remove the roots from the old pot and center them in the new pot, add substrate and then water.
Tips on timing, substrate and pot
Is there too much space in your orchid's growing pot, so that the aerial roots grow out of the opening in the bottom and over the edge? Then it's high time to repot your dendrobium. The best time is outside the flowering period so that the flowers are not dropped due to the stress. As a substrate, we recommend a loose, coarse soil based on pine bark (€9.00 on Amazon) and clay granules.
The new culture pot should be transparent and 2 to 3 cm larger in diameter. The ideal planter has a small platform on the inside for the culture pot so that excess water can drip off and prevent waterlogging.
Step-by-step instructions – How to repot dendrobium professionally
The following instructions have proven to work well in practice for all Dendrobium species. So that the roots are supple, dip or water the grape orchid beforehand. Then follow these steps:
- Knead the pot to pot out the dendrobium without strong pulling
- Shake off the used substrate, rinse it or remove it with your hands
- Spread a layer of clay granules on the bottom of the new pot as drainage
- Position the now substrate-free root network in the middle of the drainage
While holding the orchid with one hand, fill the pine bark substrate all around with the other hand. To ensure that the coarse soil is evenly distributed, shake the pot every now and then. Then water the fresh soil with soft, room temperature water and pamper your orchid with a fine mist.
Tip
If your dendrobium isn't blooming, repotting it into a new pot with fresh substrate can get the hesitant orchid going. After unpotting, the cause of the dilemma often becomes apparent in the form of rotten roots due to waterlogging. If you cut out the brown, soft root strands and repot the suffering orchid according to these instructions, the next flowering period will not be long in coming.
