You may have read that orchids repotting should be standard practice when buying a new plant. I think that is only partially correct.
It is true that orchids bought in stores more often then not will need to be repotted but in my opinion the standard practice should be to always check the medium and the root network health conditions, but the actual repotting should occur only when necessary.
Your initial concern when repotting orchids should always be researching the specie to make sure your orchid has been correctly potted in the first place.
Sometimes, when the 'business' become more important then the orchid, a generic medium may be used instead of an orchids repotting mix specific to that particular specie.
That is OK from a nursery point of view because it creates the favorable conditions needed by the young plant to establish itself but if the perfect conditions are provided, the same orchid would certainly grow much stronger.
We need to keep in mind though that repotting places a good amount of stress on the plant, plus, in a year or two at the most, repotting will become necessary due to the medium nutrients depletion.
Therefore, if the plant is in good health and the medium in good conditions there really is no reason to put your plant through such a strain.
So, once it has become a necessity... which is the best time for orchids repotting?
When new growth is just beginning; typically this occurs in spring.
When the days start to get longer the plant begins its bulk growing phase. As the plant is getting stronger it will be much less stressful to adapt to the new medium.
Sometimes this may happen in late spring/early summer, which is about as late as you want it to be.
Orchids repotting will often improve the state of health of a mature plant since, as part of the process, you would trim out the old decaying roots which allows the plant to focus its energies on the new growths.
Avoid repotting orchids in fall and/or winter. The days are getting shorter and the plant is resting. At this stage your orchid is growing very slowly and it would take a very long time to adapt to the new medium therefore prolonging the stress caused by repotting.
Also, repotting orchids should not occur in the middle of summer. Especially if you live in a geographical area where summer is hot but not humid. The plant will be using all its energy to overcome the heat and repotting at this time could cause too much stress.
Most importantly, do not repot if any blooming activity has begun.
Here are the four basic steps to orchids repotting:
1. Hold the orchid near the roots and carefully lift the entire plant, paying attention not to damage any of the leaves or the still tender new growths.
2. Note the color of the orchid roots.
If you see a couple of white roots, that's fine as long as the majority of the roots are light or dark green in color. Several pure white roots may mean that the plant needed to be watered more often, keep that in mind for the future care.
When the roots are white but have bright green tips, or side growths, it means that the orchid is actively growing new roots. This is the perfect timing for repotting orchids.
Carefully break down the old medium and inspect the entire root network for any signs of rotting. If any of the roots appear to be in decay, remove them using a sterilized nipper.
Usually, if you are not sure, you can stay on the safe side by simply removing any root that is black or brown in color. These roots are in decay or pretty close to it.
Orchids bought in a store should always be checked since roots decay is a fairly common occurrence with store-bought orchids.
3. Sterilize the roots network by spraying or dousing in Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to prevent fungi and other possible infections.
4. Carefully place the orchid in a new, sterilized pot.
Contrary to the usual increase in pot size, as in the case of soil based plants, with orchids, the opposite is not uncommon. Very often you will 'downsize' the pot as you may end up trimming up to 80% of the old roots.
Orchids grow new roots at the base of the plant in an outward fashion, not in the pot like soil plants do, therefore there is no need to leave room for growth in the pot.
Add the orchid medium around the roots of the orchid. If the new mix contains bark or coconut, you should let it soak in water overnight before using it for repotting.
Make sure to leave the base of the plant above the medium surface level - Lightly press the new medium from the outside toward the roots and add medium to fill the space if necessary.
You don't want to pack the medium as tight as you would do with soil; just enough to keep the orchid standing while avoiding leaving big pockets of air which could reduce the medium's moisture retention ability.
After repotting orchids you should position the plant/s in a shady location for a couple of weeks (no direct sunlight). Let it recover for more or less a week before the first watering session; at this stage your plant is dealing with some degree of stress and is not ready cope with over watering.
Important: Some orchids do not require orchid medium. A popular specie we can use as example is the Vanda. Such plants are classified as advanced orchids and special orchid baskets are used by orchid's growers for these types of specimens.
In these cases orchids repotting is very simple. After breaking down the old medium, if any is present, simply place the orchid in the center of the basket and tie down the roots. I like to use some kind of organic string which will break down on its own.
Repotting orchids is not as complicated as it may appear when researching the subject at first.
If your orchid is healthy simply try to match the composition of the existing medium and pay attention to the different way the new medium retains moisture. All you need to do is to adjust your watering session's frequency.
Make sure your plant's roots have time to absorb and consume the moisture before the next watering session.
Of course moist depletion would kill your plant faster than excessive watering but curiously enough a disproportionate greater number of domestic orchids die because of too much moist rather than for lack of it.
In time you will be able to tell if your orchids need water just by looking at them but in the meantime there is a tool you may use if you want a safer way to determine the right rhythm for your watering sessions.
It is normally called moisture meter, there are a few different brands but this one has been designed specifically for orchids.
The one I use is actually more than just a moisture meter. It also measure light intensity, humidity in the air, temperature, medium acidity and alkalinity (detailed info link at the bottom).
Basically a 'horticulturist dream come true' type of tool... it only costs thirty something dollars and frankly, now that I have been using it for about a year, I can't imagine being without it.
The biggest problem with repotting orchids used to be upsetting the watering rhythm and consequential temporary inappropriate watering. This tool takes all the guessing work out of the equation and makes taking care of orchids in general really easy peasy.
Dalia Cruz grew up in the Philippines where Dalia's mother has learned about orchids from Grandma. When they moved to the US they applied their knowledge to caring for orchids indoor. Collectively they have over eighty years of orchid growing experience.
For more great information on orchids repotting and how to maximize your orchids growth visit http://www.OrchidsGrowingBlog.com.
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