[ZookeeperDoug]

So last week a Neo. olens rotted out and now I'm loosing a Neo. shamrock. Both were from tropiflora and were potted when I recieved them. I noticed some discoloration and then the center mass just pulls right out. There is a strong odor associated with this. One was potted in a clay pot in a GS background, the other in a cork tube. Each was planted in ABG mix after being rinsed and disinfected. All of the other broms were offsets and were treated the same except most are mounted. I was hoping since these arrived potted they would do ok in ABG, but they rotted out. They've only gotten water from misting. Any ideas on what is causing this? the soil they are in is damp but not soggy. The broms always have some water in the axils. Could I be overmisting them? If so, how do I keep them wet enough for my vents without rotting them out. Pretty frustrating as these were the large show broms for this tank. All the other offsets/pups I got are doing great and starting to throw out roots. Any thoughts/suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[JP41]

my guess would be soils to wet. Im think if you just used somehing like coconut husk chips or some unfertilize orchid mix just to hold brom up right would do alot better than in soil(ABG mix).always seems to be trail and error with broms in viv. being that every viv has such different conditions.

 

[MeiKVR6]

^^^ Agreed. Neos do best mounted out of substrate in vivarium conditions... The humidity is so high they can rot out pretty quickly even in well-draining ABG style substrate. If you want them planted somewhere, volcanic rock, orchid bark, hydroton, or even gravel would be a better bet. That way the substrate just drains out instantly with no risk of standing water.

 

[Spaff]

Would it be possible to mount the broms and still have them where you want them? They may have been staying too moist at the roots, especially since you say all the others are doing fine.

Also, did you cut the roots off from when the plant was in the pot? Plants root adapt to the conditions they are in when they begin to grow, so if the broms roots were used to out of viv conditions, they may have rotted once placed in the moisture of a viv. This is seen in many epiphytes especially orchids being transferred from pot culture to semi-hydroponic culture.

 

[ZookeeperDoug]

Ok. So i'll order some more and try just filling the pot/cork tube with some extra LECA I have or maybe just some orchid bark.

I did not cut the roots off, I just rinsed them very well. Maybe I should also to that.

 

[frogface]

When I get broms, I cut all of the roots off and try to mount them in a way that the base of the brom is getting a lot of air. Even if it's a little wonky at first, new roots will grow and stabilize the brom.

 

[Neontra]

Are you sure the leaves had time to dry out? I also cut my roots down and they grow back nicely. Never had va brom rot.

 

[jibfest]

All really good suggestions! some kind of viv air circulation is a really helps plant health especially broms and orchids.

 

[tclipse]

I've had decent luck with planting them in the substrate, but I only will if it has a stolon long enough to keeps the leaves' base 1-2" out of the dirt. It's worked pretty well so far (1 year+)

 

[Azurel]

I have had a few rot out, found them this week all stinky. Clay is way to wet from what it looks like. Even found a big ol' varadero tad in one of them. Not sure how long he has been surviving with very little water, like barley enough to even cover him good thing I read this thread and went looking last night....

 

[Ed]

Clay is only too wet if you are misting it too often or your drainage layer is compromised preventing it from draining well..

See for example the pictures in the thread linked below of a neogelia that has been growing planted in clay for several years now.

http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/55550-clay-background-vert-8.html#post484793


Ed