Water Your Orchids!

[Ray]

This is repeated info, but based upon some recent threads, I thought it worth repeating.

Water is the driving force for plant growth.

Calculating based upon the chemical processes that go on within a plant, in order for a plant to put on ONE POUND of mass - a few weeks for corn, a couple of months for cabbage, a year or two for a cattleya, or a lifetimes for a tiny pleurothallis - it must absorb and process about 25 gallons of water, but only about a teaspoon of fertilizer.

Think about what that translates to in terms of irrigation...I don’t think anyone knows what percentage the plants absorb, but we all know most of it pours through, so “not much” is likely correct.

Now delve into that deeper and think about how your watering regimen limits the plants’ uptake.

So what does that tell us? WE NEED TO WATER MORE!

But that means we really ought to use a coarse medium so that frequent watering does not translate to root suffocation.

If you think about a plant in nature, its root system is 100% exposed to air, so can take full advantage of rain upon rain upon rain. In our windowsills, or even greenhouses, that’s a bit tougher to accomplish, so we have to make some compromises, but it does not invalidate the concept.

New growers are always afraid to overwater, but we must recognize that “overwatering” is not a problem. “Underairing” is. Figure out how to incorporate these concepts in your culture, and your plants will reward you.

[WaterWitchin]

Under-airing, and under-draining. In a perfect relationship, all epiphytes would be mounted, watered copiously, and blow in the breeze.

Wanting to grow them, regardless of one's particular climate, and in a semi-similar environment, in a medium to be determined, involves a lot of ingenuity, a ton of practicing and experimenting. And the patience of....

[SouthPark]

I'm totally behind Ray and WW on this (and also in front too ...... ie. supporting by both pushing and pulling hahaha).

In the tropics here - the humidity is generally pretty good and sometimes supports orchids. But they also do need a little bit of help sometimes - when the humidity gets low.

In my region, most of my orchids can actually do ok by simply wetting (making very wet) the region around the outskirts of the pot. The media that is.

Granted - some orchids with good enough humidity can just grow bare root. But here, let's focus on pots.

My one and only zygopetalum does not get its roots very wet at all when I water it. This doesn't mean that I'm purposely not wetting its roots much. It is just indicating that - if humidity in the air or moisture in the air is good enough, an orchid (as we know) can grow roots just fine. My zygo is growing roots both in the pot and growing aerial roots too. The roots can certainly get wet (since I do have to get weak fertiliser and weak mag cal into some roots at some time) ----- I just don't have them as wet toward the inner regions of the pot.

This is the tropics here. But ---- I'm thinking that ----- even if not in the tropics --- having media around the outskirts of the pot quite wet (and less wet towards the inner parts) --- can still maintain some nice humidity in the pot for the orchid's roots to grow and function just fine.

Naturally, there are various other factors that can/should be considered - such as air-movement, temperature (and temperature range, and rates of change of temperature of leaves and/or roots etc).

But as Ray is saying ------- one important aim is to avoid roots suffocation. So even when growing orchids with watery medium ----- must make sure the roots still get enough oxygen. Avoid suffocation of roots (or portions of roots).

For my orchids, I sometimes allow for temporary dry-out of my media ----- purposely to cut down on unwanted growths or buildup of certain things. What those things are (whether bacterial, fungal, algal or otherwise) ------ not sure. That's what I do anyway.

And one other beneficial factor, as WW and Ray are mentioning, is airing or air-movement. Gentle air-movement not just around leaves, but also around media and roots etc ..... can help avoid certain things growing. One possible (even if erroneous) analogy is bathroom with windows and doors closed for a long time after a hot shower. After a long enough time ----- due to walls staying moist ----- stuff begin to grow on the walls and in crevices. That is, such as mold/mildew. But ...... if doors and window remain open, and air is allowed to help dry things off before anything happens ....... then there's less or no such growth. So this relates to growing an orchid in a room that has still air. Sure ----- some orchids can handle it - depending on conditions. But if there is fungal growth etc ....... then we should think back to 'airing'.


Watering of scoria-grown orchids in the tropics: - YouTube

[Orchidtinkerer]

Sounds good in theory and it is all very valid what you say but it still will probably be one of the hardest things for any grower to get right.

Any substrate even the airiest can be over-watered so you still have to pay attention to not over-water. And figuring out how only comes from trial, error and experience.

Vanda's can obviously handle having dry roots for a while whereas I found zygopetalums can not handle exposed (and thus dry) roots at all. Phalaenopsis are a bit in between. Generally though like you have pointed out orchids prefer humid roots and constant access to water over dry roots - BUT if they are over saturated ie all roots damp (and thus green instead of silvery) this is too damp long term. It might not cause root rot but it does slow down growth. So in theory very simple, in practice a lot harder to achieve the right constant root saturation without over-watering or under-watering

People told me to grow zygopetalums wet and never let them dry out - this advice has caused me endless problems. Keeping them potted in the airiest substrate has by now worked best but it can never dry out. So it can be challenging.

Same with mounted plants that need daily spraying. They will survive several days without water but we don't just want them to survive, we want them to thrive and flower. I find the traditional mounted way is too much work for me- I don't want to be spraying my collection every day so I had to find alternative ways as we all have found what works best for us over the years.

Finding the right balance where you can water weekly but the plants still thrive is what to aim for. This again is different for everyone's individual growing style.

It has taken me a long time to figure out how to keep most of my orchids and it can still be hit and miss sometimes. It is annoying repotting a plant a year later and finding half the roots rotted but it happens and we learn and improve from it.

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by Orchidtinkerer

Keeping them potted in the airiest substrate has by now worked best but it can never dry out. So it can be challenging.

This is where using a big and wide pot with very wet media toward the outside of the pot (and below too) ----- while keeping inner region dryer or less wet ------- can (and probably does) help.

My days of missing has been over for a few decades. I haven't had any problems with growing mainstream orchids ------ but I do have the benefit of tropical conditions, and surprisingly - no snails in my growing environment. There's nice gentle air movement most of the time too here.

I was thinking that if orchid nurseries can keep all their plants alive, then we home growers can surely do that too. Once some basic requirements are met ...... we home growers can definitely keep orchids alive for very long times.

[Roberta]

Two words get people into a lot of trouble... "always" and "never" ... absolutes just don't work most of the time... orchid culture is a balancing act unless one is fortunate enough to live in a climate, with growing conditions, very similar to the natural habitat of whatever it is that we're trying to grow. And no matter how perfect our environment may be for some orchids, those of us infected with the "orchid disease" will want to try other types... So it's all about compromise between what we can give and what any particular type may require . When we find that overlap, we delightfully succeed. Pushing the limits - and figuring out what we can get away with is part of the thrill.

[SouthPark]

With 'specialty' orchids ----- like jokingly ones that I mentioned on another thread - such as orchids from Antarctica or top of a mountain in Nepal etc ------ those 'hypothetical' ones will most likely require very special attention - like I.C.U./life-support/VIP treatment.

For the tropical type mainstream orchids I've been growing, I just use an airy-media and very good drainage pots, and the tropical conditions generally handles the rest of the requirements nicely. And I apply weak fertiliser at the 1st day of each month. And weak mag-cal right somewhere in the middle of each month.

We should be prepared for attacks for sure ----- from certain things (mites or bugs/scale/boisduval scale/mealybugs ---- and even fungus/bacterial after mites etc do their attacking). So some 'accessories' such as pesticides, fungicides etc can be kept on-hand ------ in case they need to be used.

When it comes to unforeseen or unexpected nasty surprises ----- it is certainly beneficial to have done a lot of reading (from orchid books) and gathering information from experienced orchid growers etc ----- to handle certain situations appropriately. Applying the wrong substance, or too much of a particular substance, etc can harm an orchid for sure.

Experience certainly does count - which includes reading and preparing and gathering of useful information. Obviously, due to youtube bandwagons ...... it will sometimes be necessary to filter out information (eg. following the bandwagon of using hydrogen peroxide on everything, and thinking that the slightest colouring like purple means fusarium and end-of-the-road for an orchid etc).

[Ray]

Originally Posted by Orchidtinkerer

Sounds good in theory and it is all very valid what you say but it still will probably be one of the hardest things for any grower to get right.

There is no doubt about that last comment! I’ve been growing orchids for about 46 years now, and it’s something I still study.

[DirtyCoconuts]

Mount everything and hose daily!

[Rhonda Svoboda]

A resounding YES!! Thank you Ray,WW & SouthPark. This is definetly a learned skill (for me anyway). After several dead orchids because of overwatering I finaly found a system that works for me and my climate.
Most of this you three already covered so I just want to add a few tips and tricks for those in cold climates like mine.
!) Make sure your orchid potting mix is airy. For example- there needs to be 'air pockets'. This can be acheived with varius orchid potting mixes. I like Re-Pot me for commercial mixes. Or make your own.
2) When watering consider these factors: Temperture, the strength of the sun, wind, and season.
3) Know when your orchid is actively growing vs having a winter rest. In cold climates you will usually water much less when orchid growth slows.
4) When you bring your orchids inside in the fall you will water much less.
5) Do not relay on some website or gardening site that gives you a 'water once a week' or similar directions. Various orchids have different watering needs and many factors influence watering.
6) Always remember to never fertilize a dry plant- it will burn roots.
Finally, pay attention to orchids. Dont ignore them
6) Know your orchid. It will tell you when to water.Feel the mix to see if its wet or dry.