Rookie Mistake- buying a "Just Add Ice" orchid... - Page 4 - Orchid Board

harrywitmore · #31 12-22-2009, 12:03 PM

Although I have not been watering with ice I have been watering maybe once a week and mine still looks great. It did have a decorative container on the outside but a plastic pot with drainage on the inside. I will go back and get another after this one quits flowering.

nanc · #32 01-31-2010, 10:21 PM

Well, I'm not an expert so I was intrigued and bought one. It has sat in my office for two months, 75 degrees during the day (my cubicle is in a windowless corner), and probably down to 60 at night. I water with three cubes once a week. My baby has been in bloom since I bought it without showing any stress whatsoever. Perhaps in time it will fail, but meanwhile I feel as if the ice idea was created to avoid overwatering, which I think we are more prone to. (Akin to overloving) I'm thinking of freezing some water with fertilizer in Ice Cube trays to feed it come spring - any thoughts on that one? Besides the fact I might surprise an office mate with blue ice cubes in their drinks!

rl2peter · #33 02-02-2010, 01:52 PM

my just add ice orchid is pretty much dead. I tried watering it in a nice lukewarm bath, and i cut all the dead stuff away. in the end I suppose the damage was already done when i started trying to save it. I'm not going to try orchids again for a while. But once I learn more about them I will try again. For now I'll stick to lavenders and such. kudos to you that can keep just add ices alive.

trdyl · #34 02-02-2010, 02:00 PM

Phaleanopsis are not temperate to arctic plants. Frozen water coming in contact with the tissue will kill it. Overly cold water will put them into shock.

johnblagg · #35 02-02-2010, 04:51 PM

I have to agree the ice cubes are not a good way to do the watering ...other than that I have a couple of them that are doing fine after repotting ....the plants were actually pretty nice and the roots were great .

But I gaurentee they didnt water them at the nursery where they were grown with ice cubes and they didnt use snow blowers to mist em......LOl

any

RosieC · #36 02-03-2010, 11:10 AM

I think the idea was thought up as a way to avoid overwatering. I wonder if they do beter that way if the roots are not on the surface so that by the time the water touches them it has melted and is warmer.

But in some situations that amount of water just won't be enough even if the cold does not get the roots. As well as the cold another problem with this method is that the amount of water will only be correct in certain conditions, much better to water and judge the amount of water by how quickly it is drying.

phalphan1 · #37 02-04-2010, 02:44 PM

I've had my Just Add Ice Orchid for over a year now and the ice cube method has worked out great!! It had 2 flower spikes when I got it and it bloomed from January until the end of March. Now it's sending up a new flower spike. I'm wondering, has anyone on this forum even tried the ice cube watering method? Why is this watering method so stupid?!? This was the reason I purchased my first orchid, because the care instructions were EASY for a change and this watering method works! I've purchased these orchids for friends as well, and their orchids look lovely and they all water with ice! I would challenge all of you to actually try this method before bashing it! And check our their website...they have testimonials from other people that have had success too...Just Add Ice Phalaenopsis Orchid Care.

JustAddIceOrchids · #38 06-02-2010, 04:27 PM

Hi harrywhitemore - you are correct about watering with ice. The ice cube watering method offers a perfectly safe and easy way to care for phalaenopsis orchids. The easiest way to kill an orchid is to overwater it and by using 3 ice cubes a week, phalaenopsis orchids receive the perfect amount premeasured water each week.

Using ice provides the roots with a slow-drip watering process that allows the orchid roots to slowly soak up the moisture and prevents water from sitting in the bottom of the pot.

While this method has been tested thoroughly and successfully for Just Add Ice phalaneopsis orchids, it may not be right for other kinds of plants. We encourage you to try this watering method for yourself!

SewPretty · #39 06-02-2010, 10:26 PM

I did try it. and it failed for me. lots of others here have tried it and it failed for them. But it works for some people
and that's the main point here. so many people have such different growing conditions (light, heat, humidity etc) that it's absurd to assume that this method or any other method is the ONE best way.

my personal problem with just add ice orchids is that the one my boyfriend bought for me didn't come with drainage holes. There were 3-4 greenish/yellowish mini phals with not many roots in a BIG bowl. I thought it was a clever idea though and i followed the directions right up until i realized something was wrong... but it was too late. I tried to repot them but they had root rot so bad I lost them all. so sad. they were very pretty.

MAGN · #40 07-05-2011, 05:47 PM

In April, 2010 I bought a "Just Add Ice Orchid" from WalMart for $15.
I'm just a rookie, not knowing what many Senior Members think they know, so I just followed the directions; I FAITHFULLY added 3 LARGE ice cubes weekly and did not even fertilize it...my ignorance. The blooms lasted for 4 months in 2010 and then grew another spike and is full of many, many more beautiful blooms this year. So, I say, please don't knock it unless you have tried it. I am still watering with ice but have started lightly fertilizing. If it dies now, so be it.
I bought ANOTHER "Just Add Ice" in February of this year, 2011, and it just finished blooming and has ALREADY grown another spike and a branch spike off the original one. (I Didn't know enough to prune it.) Both spikes are now full of large buds with one flower opened.
They are both happy orchids, so far. Money well spent!