New at this... - Page 4 - Orchid Board

bodaciousbonsai · #31 12-11-2009, 01:51 AM

good choice of words nut girl. as far as the food mujoo, my rule of thumb is too feed weekly weakly. i use schultzs orchid food. I just add the fertilizer to the sprayer im using. i use about 1/4 of what they say to use unless i know the orchid is a food nut. such as a vanda. if your not sure about the humidity thing this might help. in winter the average household humidity (aka) how much water is in the air. is around 30% -50%. this is not good for orchids. they usually require at least 70% to do good.now your probably asking yourself how do i keep the humidity at 70%? I set up a shelf and taped clear plastic around the shelf to hold the humidity level at 70%. I also used a humidifier to directly feed the humidity in the shelving area. as far as air movement this is a must. you should keep air moving 24/7 around the orchid. even the roots.by going to a bigger sized medium such as bark in the pot this will allow more air to the roots. ok i used a 12 volt computer fan hooked up to a 12 volt adapter. they run almost forever end are nothing to burn for power.

mujoo · #32 12-11-2009, 10:26 AM

Now the leaves on my orchid are weak and droopy. Is that bad?

nutgirl · #33 12-11-2009, 10:47 AM

Mujoo,

When you repotted you went to a pretty fast drying medium. The bark pieces are larger than moss with more air spaces between. I'm guessing than your phal is reacting to the repot and a dryer environment. The roots in your pic didn't look all that bad.

There is usually a transition period while everything adjusts. Are you seeing signs moisture/condensation on the inside of your pot? If things look dry don't hesitate to water (I also am a dunker/soaker) especially since your bark is still fairly dry.
I find it's better to water when needed than on a set schedule but that's the tricky part, no one can tell you when that is, you have to find it out based on your own plant and conditions.

Have fun!
Maureen

Undergrounder · #34 12-11-2009, 11:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mujoo

Now the leaves on my orchid are weak and droopy. Is that bad?

It's a sign of dehydration.. It's probably suffering a little shock from the repot, and bark is not very good for holding much water. Your plant was also well adapted for a damp environment, and a change to coarse bark, in my opinion, was not a good idea. I don't think it needed repotting in the first place.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Undergrounder

Your plant looks very healthy! It looks like it has been recently repotted and won't need repotting for a while. It's always worth checking the roots of new plants, but if the roots are fine and the moss looks fresh, i would put it back in the same pot with the same moss.

If it seems to be taking more than a week or two to dry out between waterings, you could add in some chunks of styrofoam in the bottom to increase the drainage and make it dry out faster. But in the mean time just water it very conservatively and it do very well.

But now that you've done it, i'll repeat what i suggested before:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Undergrounder

Do yourself a favour and water the hell out of it, those bark chunks are coarse enough to handle it. And its used to very wet conditions in that sphag.

Not having seen your plant or the new mix it's hard to tell for sure, but i would water every day, or put it back in moss.

Ranchnanny · #35 12-11-2009, 12:51 PM

Mujoo, my Phals. did the same thing when I repotted them from moss to bark or s/h but I kept them in the new medium and they turned around and now are doing very well. Use your judgment to water more often if they look dry. At times lower leaves will turn color and soften as they die which is normal. Hang in there!

Sheridan