other tools used when repotting orchids

other tools

There are other tools that may help you with your orchid potting - you are sure to add some of your own as you gain experience.

An electric or cordless drill and assortment of bits make securing a Vanda in a basket easy work. It is also useful for drilling holes in mounts for hangers.

A wooden dowel of 1 to 1-½" diameter can be used as a "potting stick" with certain media. A wooden hammer handle will also do the job.

Have a lot of orchids to mount ? A hot glue gun makes mounting small orchids fast and easy.

Tweezers can be helpful in removing small weeds from orchid pots or stripping away a remnant of dried sheath. Be extremely careful around the tender new leads and root tips. They are also handy for removing broken glass when deflasking.

Inexpensive plastic buckets and storage containers are always useful to orchid growers for soaking potting medium or creating a special mix.

A hammer is useful for breaking clay pots and flasks. A good, heavy pair of lineman's pliers will also do the job - and more.

A 12-16" metal rod can be used for knocking out the bottom of flasks. You can buy a piece of ½" threaded rod or metal stock at home centers and cut to a convenient length. A round file may also work.

Scraps of fiberglass window screen can be used to line baskets to prevent the medium from falling out. Small strips can be used to fasten an orchid to a mount.

Aluminum oven trays in various sizes are handy to keep on hand for deflasking. They can also be filled with gravel and used as humidity trays for small orchids or compots that have been recently repotted.

A pair of bolt cutters can be useful for cutting an orchid "out of jail," that is, removing wire hangers from around fragile new growth. Although they can be heavy and awkward to use, the smallest ones you can find should do just fine for cutting 10 or 12 gauge galvanized wire.

Vinyl gutter guard is a multi-purpose item that belongs on the potting bench. Available in rolls, convenient lengths can be cut to secure pads of sphagnum to mounts. You can even fashion it into custom net pots.