Can I use a seedling mat to raise the atmospheric temperature to grow polychilos?

[Orchid grower]

Hi everyone,

I grow my orchids in my home by a window and I'm considering using a seedling heat mat to raise the temperature to be more suitable so I can start growing polychilos/phalaenopsis hybrids. I don't think I'm ready for a full polychilos but wanted to start with a hybrid.

On rainy cold days it can get as cold as 16-17° by the window and as low as 15° at night. If I put my warmer growing orchids on a heat mat I'm thinking this would raise the root area by quite a few degrees. In the summer it gets very hot so I'm not worried about that.

I'd love any input. Thank you

[Roberta]

The heat mat won't raise the atmospheric temperature significantly, but it will keep the roots warm which is the goal.

[Orchid grower]

Originally Posted by Roberta

The heat mat won't raise the atmospheric temperature significantly, but it will keep the roots warm which is the goal.

Thanks Roberta! So if the leaves are colder than the roots is that okay or something I should be concerned about?

[Roberta]

They will be more forgiving. The Phal hybrids likely will be OK, some of the species may still be unhappy. You may want to move all of them away from the cold window. If you need more light, you can easily enough add supplemental light. If you're just supplementing natural light (as opposed to growing in an otherwise dark area) you don't really need fancy grow iights, any full-spectrum LED light will do.