The misters are just low-flow nozzles on 1/4 inch tubing, that run like the rest of the sprinklers. So it isn't a system. With only 50 plants, a full system is really over-kill. These misters came with the house, so I just incorporated them into the plan, use them for the mounted plants. I could do just as well with a hose with a few plants. The misters only run for about 2 minutes a day.
If you want to use mist rather than "drench" just get a hose nozzle with different settings (Home Depot). But I think that for your situation, no need to do anything except regular watering.
I have my plants grouped mostly by their light requirement - shade lovers together, sun lovers together in a different area. So in the various areas, everything gets watered the same. (I have different sprinkler lines for different areas, because my yard is big) Since different plants have different watering needs, I make the adjustment with choice of medium. For example, in the "sun" area, I have Cymbidiums that need to stay damp and Laelia anceps that need to dry out rapidly. How to keep both groups happy? The Cymbidiums are in small bark in plastic pots so they tend to stay damp. The L. anceps hanging above them are in baskets with little or no media (maybe some large bark), or mounted. So with the same watering, they're dry in 2-3 hours. In the shady area (my patio) I have mounted plants (which dry out), plants in baskets with moss (stay damp but lots of air), and plants in pots with either moss or small bark depending on need. So... again, the whole area gets the same watering, the needs of the individual plants get managed by choice of medium. Small bark stays more damp, large bark dries faster. Plastic pots stay wetter than clay pots, baskets dry even faster.
(The "clay pots" are unglazed terracotta, the cheapest)
I fertilize manually, about once every week or two (or three). Orchids don't need much fertilizer. For that, for years I used a 2-gallon pump sprayer. Recently, I got a battery-powered sprayer because it was getting too hard for me to carry that sprayer all over my yard. (getting older). The only plants where I use time-release fertilizer are Cymbidiums and Catasetinae - both grow rather fast and need more fertilizer than the "gentle squirt" that everything else gets. So I don't try to combine watering and fertilizing.
As far as growth rate is concerned, it's different for different types. If general care is good, they'll all grow at the rate that is right for the type of orchid. A Den. speciosum may take 10-15 years from seedling to blooming size. A Catasetum produces new pseudobulbs, roots and leaves every year. (In spring you can almost WATCH them grow)
Watering frequency changes with the temperature and seasons - i winter I may water the Cattleyas every 3 days, the Cymbidiums and main patio area every 2 days, the mounted plants once a day. In summer, maybe every 2 days for the Cattleyas and daily for most of the rest. (And of course special handling for the Catasetums, no water at all in winter, heavy watering during the growing season of spring and summer) With all the rain we have been having, I mostly let Mother Nature take care of the watering.
Last edited by Roberta; 03-28-2023 at 12:42 AM..
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