Question
I see you are local. I just wanted to raise this as an issue, in case you hear from other people. I bought new bags of small Wonder Bark and UniGro Orchid Mix from SummerWinds in Palo Alto. Opened the bags Sunday to repot an indoor orchid. Monday I was covered with bites (100+). Finally identified them as chigger bites, and I was surprised--long time gardener, never had this happen. Searched for source, and found chiggers crawling on my kitchen faucet, which is next to where I put the repotted orchid (bay window behind sink...). Had to use a magnifying glass--they are tiny. But that also explains why my husband got a few bites that showed up Wednesday--he did the dishes Tuesday night. The only place they could have come from is either the bark or orchid mix--I mixed the two when I repotted. I am guessing it is the orchid mix--a damper spot for the chiggers to breed, from everything I have read on about them. Never heard of this before, but if you are a local orchid person, this might be good to know about. If orchid mix was sterilized properly, it is possible the chigger eggs got laid in the mix after sterilization...

Answer
Hello Katherine,

Thanks for the heads up!  I believe the chiggers came in the UniGro Orchid Mix and not the bark.  I've never used the UniGro brand and don't think I ever will - now!  I normally use various sizes of Sequoia Brank orchid bark mixed with large perlite to pot my orchids.  I've also tried coco chips and have been pleased with it and may use it more in the future, it is a little more expensive than bark but lasts twice as long.  

What a nice husband doing the dishes!!!  (grin)

Jim Kawasaki
San Jose, Ca.