Planting Orchids: How to Repot an Orchid Plant

An orchid can live happily in a pot for a long time, blooming season after season, but it needs repotting every few years. The growing medium breaks down over time and won't properly anchor the plant or provide the necessary nutrients.

An orchid could also outgrow its pot, or the cachepot the orchid came in might not be the optimal vessel for the plant.

Know how to care for the orchid plant and when and how to repot it to keep your orchid happy and healthy.

Optimal Growing Conditions for Orchid Plants

These plants thrive in strong light, but not direct late-afternoon sunlight (although dendrobiums can handle more sun). They also need high humidity and airflow around the roots. They need regular periods of drying alternated with heavy watering. Orchids do best in temperatures above 50°F but below 85°F.

The closer you come to creating these conditions, the more success and better blooms you will have.

Most store-bought orchids come packaged in cheap plastic pots with the roots packed in soaked moss. This violates two of the main rules of successful growth. There is no airflow around the roots, and the roots are never given a chance to dry out completely. Thus, the plant cannot breathe and root rot is inevitable.

Orchid roots are highly specialized organs designed to soak up water quickly. They do not extract nutrients from the soil.​​

How to Repot an Orchid

The first step with any store-bought orchid is to enjoy the bloom. Don't attempt to re-pot a flowering plant.

After the bloom fades, cut the dead flower spike off with sterile snippers and repot the plant. Pot the plants into specialized orchid pots in an orchid mixture. These pots feature wide drainage slits so water will easily run through the pot. Orchid potting mixture contains varied chunky ingredients, including pine bark, charcoal, and sometimes styrofoam.

To re-pot your orchid, follow these steps:

1. Remove It from the Pot

   Remove the orchid from the plastic pot and carefully remove as much moss as possible. Healthy roots should be white and firm, with a small green growing point.

2. Prune Unhealthy Roots

   Cut away any shriveled, rotten, or blackened roots.

3. Add Plant to New Pot

   Set the plant into the pot and fill it with the potting mixture. The plant should be firmly situated, but it will not be completely anchored. Eventually, new roots will grow through the potting mix and attach to the pot itself, thus anchoring your plant.

   Find a good spot for the repotted orchid. Choose an east-facing window with a few hours of mild morning sun To provide the necessary humidity and catch run-off water, put the plant into a wide, deep tray and fill the tray with gravel.

Tips for Indoor Orchid Care

Once an orchid finds a happy spot and falls into a routine, the plant should regularly throw out new roots and leaves or canes and reward you yearly with a beautiful bloom. Care for your orchid with these simple tips:

• Water an orchid weekly and heavily during the summer months. Let the water drench the roots and fill up the pebble tray.
• Feed the orchid weekly during the growing season with a weak powder or liquid fertilizer.
• Keep your plant warm and reduce water to once a month in the winter. Mist it every so often to make sure it stays hydrated.
• Don't fertilize an orchid in the winter.
• Put the plant in the kitchen sink and give it a good soak if you see excessive dry conditions. This won't kill the orchid if done infrequently throughout the year and if the plant thoroughly dries before its next regular watering.
• If you see signs of distress, such as yellowing leaves, wrinkled leaves, or no blooms, move the plant and keep tweaking the growing conditions.