Which type of fertilizer when in bloom vs. when not?

[RosieC]

ppm is a measurement of strength with stands for 'Parts Per Million'. Put simply, for every million atoms/molecules in the watering solution, 125 of them will be Nitrogen (N).

All fertiliser will have 3 numbers on, like 10-5-10 which stands for the N-P-K stengths in the fertiliser. (N = Nitrogen,P = Phosphoros,K = Potasion). I'm not sure what these are measured in, but Ray has a calculator on his website here. You enter the N value from your fertliser, you enter the ppm you want (it default to 125ppm which Ray recomends) and how often you fertilise/flush, and it will convert it to tsp per gallon.

[RosieC]

Originally Posted by camille1585

I use the same fertilizer at the same dose year round regardless of whether they are in spike or not. I use an almost balanced fertilizer (5-6-6 since I can't find anything balanced!) at 125ppm N at every watering. It seems to work for me, since I have several orchids in spike at the moment.

I'm glad Minda quoted this, because I just asked the question on another thread about whether 125ppm is a good strength for flowering.

On this thread here Ray said that bloom bosters do not boost blooms, but rather growth formulas with high N can actually inhibit blooming, so switching to a lower N formula then allows then to flower. (Hope I got that right, see the link for what he actually said.)

I had asked the question about whether Ray's recomended 125ppm N was too strong for blooming. I've been working on 125ppm N all this year and have not noticed a problem as many of my Phals and my Dens have spiked.

Good to know someone else is also finding this a good year round strenth.

[tucker85]

William Cullina has some good tips on when and how to fertilize in his book, Understanding Orchids. On page 52 he talks about types of fertilizers and how fertilizing affects dormancy and flowering. His book can be read for free on-line at Google books.

[Call_Me_Bob]

on ray's website, i believe it said that he shoots for 125ppm - 150 ppm of nitrogen. that is with a complete fertilizer, of course. i shoot for around 125ppm

[BobInBonita]

125 parts per million Nitrogen

That is the dilution.

Most fertilizers are too concentrated for weakly weekly feeding, and need to be diluted.

[Call_Me_Bob]

right, with most fertilizers you dissolve or dilute in water before administering