Help with quality of tap water + high Sodium content?

[Ray]

Originally Posted by ChrisMalaga

We already dope our orchids with lots of things they don't receive in nature, I wonder what level of Calcium and Magnesium epiphyte orchids growing on trees receive, maybe they are more resistant than we think... or maybe not?

What are we “doping with” that they don’t see in nature?

Agreed, they don’t get chemical-based fertilizers, but the ions they get are the same, no matter the source.

They’re also not getting kelp extract, but again, the chemicals they get from that are the same as they produce themselves and/or get from the microbial exudates in their environments.

And while the microbes we may apply via probiotics are probably not of the same array of species, they achieve many of the same protective and supportive tasks.

Yes, orchids are hardy. It takes a lot for a plant to survive in a “hostile” environment long enough to reproduce and have offspring that have adapted to the new environment, and they are the most highly evolved plants in that respect. However, the quality, condition, and appearance of many orchids in nature is rarely as good as they are in cultivation. I suppose you could call their living to be maybe a bit above “subsistence level”.

As to “how much do they get”, studies have shown that the water cascading down on them in rainforests around the world varies, primarily due to local geology (dust and host plant exudates), and is typically <15-20 ppm TDS, but that is mostly nitrogen, with other ions in much, much smaller concentrations. We also must consider that they get fed every time it rains, but those nutrients are only present in the water for the first instant that it begins raining, and is soon replaced by immense floods of pure rainwater.

We really have no idea how much of the solutions we apply are actually taken up by the plants, so for all I know, the sum of the “micro-doses” they get in nature might be closer to what we’re giving them than we realize. Certainly the mineral contents of the plants are pretty similar. Different proportions, sure, but the same minerals.

Chris - thank you for starting this thread. Lots of good back-and-forth here!

[ChrisMalaga]

I was using my instinct, I'm not very scientific in my statements (but slowly improving)
I think if I was lost in a forest I would probably collect rainwater to survive, even if it falls from some leaves, possibly after some boiling. Would I drink from a bucket full of fertilized water? Probably not, unless I really have no option, then probably my survival instinct would prevail

Here in southern Spain we do get some dust from the Sahara desert, rainwater can be full of mud, this statistically happens more often the day after you washed your car. So maybe it's not a good example of "clean rainwater", now that I think of it. Should be the same dust that flies over the Amazonian rainforest and fertilizes orchids with minerals.

Even if the ions are the same, my feeling is that the quantity is much lower, and as you said there is a huge amount of flushing with almost pure water. I'm also pretty sure that the secret why, in general, plants grow "so much better" in their natural environment and are able to stand drought or floods, even if the conditions may be similar to ours, is that in that enviroment there are often colonies of bacterias and fungi that have created a symbiotic relationship that is not so easy to recreate, at least not exactly the same.

I was impressed when I had a trip in the forests of Panama, to see how some plants of the same families of those I cultivate in my home, grew in what was basically mud, and epiphytes were growing on totally soaked moss dripping water, due to the heavy rains that happen daily, often more than once per day, when I have to buy tons of perlite and be careful not to overwater at home!

I think I'm going OT, but nice conversation, and nice to learn new things from you and your website, Ray

[Fuerte Rav]

Originally Posted by ChrisMalaga

Here in southern Spain we do get some dust from the Sahara desert, rainwater can be full of mud, this statistically happens more often the day after you washed your car. So maybe it's not a good example of "clean rainwater", now that I think of it. Should be the same dust that flies over the Amazonian rainforest and fertilizes orchids with minerals.

So true!
We are in day 5 of a calima and it's foul
I've often wondered if the Saharan dust contains anything beneficial to plants in general (my orchids are all grown indoors because of the dessicating nature of the calimas.).

[ChrisMalaga]

Originally Posted by Fuerte Rav

So true!
We are in day 5 of a calima and it's foul
I've often wondered if the Saharan dust contains anything beneficial to plants in general (my orchids are all grown indoors because of the dessicating nature of the calimas.).

Do you live in the eastern part of Canary Islands? I think that area is affected by Saharian winds more than us. We only get the dust
Unfortunately we're affected by northerly winds (we call this wind "Terral"), coming from Córdoba (la olla de España - the pan of Spain) with temperatures around 40C and humidity as low as 20%. This happens maybe 10 days per year, and I usually have to spray everything multiple times per day when this happens (I grow most plants outside), but sometimes we are protected by fog, like San Francisco, when that mass of hot air meets the sea

[Ray]

I don’t know about orchids, per se, but that dust from the Sahara does dump a bunch of nutrients in the sea.

[ChrisMalaga]

Saharan Dust Feeds Amazon’s Plants | NASA

[Fuerte Rav]

Originally Posted by ChrisMalaga

Do you live in the eastern part of Canary Islands? I think that area is affected by Saharian winds more than us. We only get the dust
Unfortunately we're affected by northerly winds (we call this wind "Terral"), coming from Córdoba (la olla de España - the pan of Spain) with temperatures around 40C and humidity as low as 20%. This happens maybe 10 days per year, and I usually have to spray everything multiple times per day when this happens (I grow most plants outside), but sometimes we are protected by fog, like San Francisco, when that mass of hot air meets the sea

Yep, we are the eastern most island, just 100km from the coast of Africa.
Good to know that when we batten down the hatches as a calima approaches it will actually be doing some good as well! Our calima conditions are similar to your figures, very high temps, very low humidity, very strong winds, very low visibility, difficult to breathe, foul taste - nightmare!

Thanks for the NASA link - very interesting!