first time Orchid owner - Page 2 - Orchid Board

caseycheath · #11 10-27-2020, 04:28 PM

Thanks I will look in into a moth orchid soon. watched a couple of the videos links and another video on youtube. I noticed the people on youtube seem to have theirs in planters with holes drilled all the way up the sides and bottoms of their containers. i only have holes in the bottom of mine. Also, I have some UV grow lights my wife uses for her succulants. its on a timer, would it work to put my orchid near that at night to get it some more light. thats when the thing kicks on is at night?

---------- Post added at 03:28 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:16 PM ----------

Thanks I will look in into a moth orchid soon. watched a couple of the videos links and another video on youtube. I noticed the people on youtube seem to have theirs in planters with holes drilled all the way up the sides and bottoms of their containers. i only have holes in the bottom of mine. Also, I have some UV grow lights my wife uses for her succulants. its on a timer, would it work to put my orchid near that at night to get it some more light. thats when the thing kicks on is at night?

Dollythehun · #12 10-27-2020, 04:32 PM

Send us a picture of your wife's lights. You may be able to put your Cattleya under them and be fine. DON'T take too much advise from the internet. Better to ask us. You don't need holes all the way up your pots. Its just some people's preference for growing. We each have a different method due to our conditions.

Don't water your orchids with ice cubes; don't put hydrogen peroxide on the roots. Now that we have that out of the way...carry on.

Roberta · #13 10-27-2020, 08:55 PM

A consideration with your wife's light... if it is on at night, for how many hours? Orchids do need it dark at night for a "natural" number of hours. I have used supplemental lighting to extend the number of hours of good light during the day - my Phalaenopsis bloomed much better with about 12 hours of light per day, since what came in the window was adequate for only about 4 hours and then the house shaded things too much. But 12-14 hours per day of light should be the most they get. Some are more sensitive than others... there are some in the Cattleya group that can have blooming inhibited by a street light or night light. Others aren't so picky, but still do need nighttime.

Mountaineer370 · #14 10-28-2020, 01:13 PM

Welcome to the board, caseycheath! I live in Michigan, also in Zone 5b. I've been growing orchids in my home for about five years, so I'm still a novice. In the beginning, I tried a few different types that I was attracted to but did not have the right conditions for some of them (light, temps, humidity). I'm now down to growing only Phalaenopsis because they do very well for me, but I know many people in Michigan who are successful with many different types of orchids.

I did end up providing supplemental lighting, enough to make sure the orchids got light 12 - 13 hours a day. As Roberta mentioned, they are in the dark during actual nighttime hours. The lights definitely helped with blooming.

The American Orchid Society (aos.org) is a great resource. You can learn a lot just by browsing around their site. There, you can also find a list of affiliated orchid societies, including quite a number in Michigan, if you think you would ever be interested in belonging to one. (I tried to provide a link directly to the Michigan list but couldn't get it to work.) These days, we are all meeting via Zoom, but we are still having guest speakers.

caseycheath · #15 10-28-2020, 11:30 PM

Mountaineer370 thanks for the input on the grow lights. do you use the ones that are full spectrum white light or the ones that are purple and ultra violet? I tried uploading a photo of what my wife has for her succulents but it wasn't working for some reason. The cattleya I bought hasn't even started a stake yet so I have plenty of time to establish proper lighting. I just want to try to set good habits now so I can hopefully get more orchids and be successful with them lol

Dollythehun · #16 10-29-2020, 08:18 AM

If you are going to buy more, buy them to suit your conditions, not by impulse. It will have a lot of hassel, heartache and dollars. This is the lesson we nearly all wish we'd learned. You might start with phals, if you're successful, try oncidiums, then as you gain experience, higher light plants such as catts.

Until you post 5 times you can't post pictures. Reply to other posts until you get five, then show us your lights.

Mountaineer370 · #17 10-29-2020, 03:06 PM

To answer your question, I use 27W full-spectrum fluorescent lights, not LED. They are regular floor lamps, reading/task lamps, I guess you could call them, not specifically made for plants. But they work just fine for me. Verilux, the manufacturer, doesn't seem to make them anymore; all of their offerings are now LED.

I agree with Dolly above and a couple others who posted here. Start with just a few plants. Phalaenopsis are great for beginners. Give yourself six months or so and see how they do. Then branch out and try other genera, but do your research on the needs of the plant to determine if it will do well in the specific conditions that you can offer.

caseycheath · #18 10-29-2020, 04:24 PM

Thanks for the advice all, Yeah I bout this one not so much on impulse per se, more so that it was literally the only orchid in the store that wasn't insanely expensive. so it came down to price. like they had a couple others that were already in bloom. but they were about 3x as expensive. so my train of thought was $8 for a discounted orchid to see if I can keep it alive and get a bloom out of it or spend closer to $30 on one that I might kill because I am soo new. But yes, now after taking all the advice into consideration I might contact one of the local greenhouses and see about a species like the moth orchid that might fit my needs better. I just wanted to see if I can actually keep one alive before I dive head long into this.

Mountaineer370 · #19 10-29-2020, 05:13 PM

I don't want to discourage you from patronizing a greenhouse if you wish, but since you mentioned cost as a factor, remember that most retail stores like Meijer, Kroger, Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Lowe's, Home Depot, and on and on, sell orchids. They are overwhelmingly Phalaenopsis hybrids, which are the exact type we are suggesting as easy orchids for beginners.

We used to have a couple of very well-regarded orchid greenhouses in our state that have, sadly, gone out of business in the last few years. The more general type of greenhouses I have visited in my area do not carry orchids, but you may have better luck in your part of the state.

Whatever you end up with, have fun! Orchids are an enjoyable hobby. (And as others have mentioned, it's easy to get addicted!)