Soil & potting mix
Best soil for Thick Gongora (Gongora grossa)
Also called Thick Gongora.
More about thick gongora
About Thick Gongora
Gongora grossa · also called Thick Gongora · tropical
Gongora grossa is a robust epiphytic orchid from Colombia and Venezuela, producing pendulous racemes of fleshy, fragrant flowers with distinctively thickened, waxy segments. Like all Gongoras it performs best in a hanging basket to allow its drooping spikes to develop unobstructed. Thrives in intermediate to warm conditions with high humidity.
Preferred mix: Coarse epiphytic bark mix in a hanging basket
Watch for — Pseudobulb shrivelling: Shrivelled pseudobulbs indicate either underwatering or root loss (which prevents water uptake even when the medium is moist). Check roots — healthy roots are white-green and firm. If roots have rotted, remove dead material, treat with fungicide, and repot in fresh bark.
Why thick gongora needs this mix
Thick Gongora is an easy-going houseplant — it just wants a free-draining general mix that holds some moisture but never stays soggy.
- Thick Gongora is adaptable, but like most houseplants it still needs air at the roots — a mix that drains freely while holding a working moisture reserve.
- A little perlite or bark stops ordinary compost compacting into an airless block over time, which is the slow, common cause of decline.
- It is not fussy about pH or special ingredients; getting the air-to-moisture balance right is what matters.
For the full picture on what makes up a good mix, see our guide to the main types of soil and potting media — it explains why each ingredient above behaves the way it does.
What goes wrong with the wrong mix
The wrong soil is one of the most common reasons thick gongora struggles, and the damage often shows up weeks later as a watering problem. For this species specifically:
- Plain garden soil or a cheap, claggy compost compacts in the pot and slowly suffocates thick gongora's roots.
- A pure peat mix that dries to a hard, water-repelling block is hard to re-wet and stresses the plant.
- No drainage hole turns even a good mix into a stagnant, root-rotting sump.
Reusing tired, compacted old compost or skipping the perlite. A free-draining mix in a pot with a hole solves most "why is it struggling" cases for thick gongora.
pH — does it matter for thick gongora?
Thick Gongora is not fussy about pH — a slightly acidic to neutral mix (around pH 6.0-7.0), which a standard peat-free compost provides, is perfectly fine. No testing needed.
If you want to check or adjust it, the soil pH guide walks through testing and the safe ways to nudge a mix more acidic or more alkaline.
DIY mix vs a bagged one
A decent bagged houseplant compost works for thick gongora as long as you mix in perlite for air. The simple DIY ratio above is cheap and more reliable than a budget bag alone.
Drainage and the pot
A pot with a drainage hole and a saucer you empty after watering is all thick gongora needs — the free-draining mix does the rest.
Refresh thick gongora's mix every 18-24 months; even good compost slumps and compacts, and fresh, airy mix is often the simplest fix for a tired plant. When the time comes, our repotting guide for thick gongora covers the timing and technique step by step.
Thick Gongora soil — frequently asked questions
What is the best soil mix for thick gongora?
3 parts peat-free houseplant compost : 1 part perlite : 1 part orchid bark or coco chips (optional). Thick Gongora is adaptable, but like most houseplants it still needs air at the roots — a mix that drains freely while holding a working moisture reserve.
Can I use normal potting soil for thick gongora?
Plain garden soil or a cheap, claggy compost compacts in the pot and slowly suffocates thick gongora's roots. A decent bagged houseplant compost works for thick gongora as long as you mix in perlite for air. The simple DIY ratio above is cheap and more reliable than a budget bag alone.
Does thick gongora need a special pH?
Thick Gongora is not fussy about pH — a slightly acidic to neutral mix (around pH 6.0-7.0), which a standard peat-free compost provides, is perfectly fine. No testing needed.
Should I buy a bagged mix or make my own for thick gongora?
A decent bagged houseplant compost works for thick gongora as long as you mix in perlite for air. The simple DIY ratio above is cheap and more reliable than a budget bag alone.
How often should I refresh the soil for thick gongora?
Refresh thick gongora's mix every 18-24 months; even good compost slumps and compacts, and fresh, airy mix is often the simplest fix for a tired plant. A pot with a drainage hole and a saucer you empty after watering is all thick gongora needs — the free-draining mix does the rest.
Keep reading
- Thick Gongora care — the full brief (light, water, humidity, problems, pet safety)
- How often to water thick gongora — the schedule the mix feeds into
- Repotting thick gongora — when and how to refresh the mix
- Soil pH guide — test it and adjust it safely
- Should I water my plant? The simple check first
- Overwatered plant — signs and recovery
- Root rot — how the wrong soil starts it, and how to save the plant
- Best soil for creeping elatostema
- Best soil for malabar quisqualis
- Best soil for teysmann's medinilla
- All 8452 soil and potting-mix guides in the Growli library