Just add ice??

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

One last thing...

When an orchid blooms it is not the ultimate indicator that it is flourishing.

It isn't.

It just simply means that the plant has enough energy to put up an inflorescence and bloom so that it may reproduce.

When the orchid blooms, it's only a partial indicator of the overall health of your plant. You gotta look at the entire package to accurately determine whether it is truly flourishing or not.

There are tons of stories where after somebody's Phalaenopsis blooms, the plant starts going downhill. Countless. Don't believe me, go do a search on the "many orchid forums" out there.

I'm not going to make my silly analogies again. It's just redundant.

Oh yeah...

For anybody who wants to take a shot at me for my screen name, don't even go there. I've heard it before. And it's old.

[Erce]

My - i live in denmark, and we have snow and freezing nights - i cant water with "just add ice", its in general to cold for that!
And flover and new stems can be a chid saying "i´m about to die - so i make flovers to make seeds"

[phalphan1]

You didn't answer my questions...
1. Have you ever tried this watering method to prove or disprove watering with ice?

2. Explain why my orchid is flourishing (i.e. new leaves and new flower spikes) after over a year of watering with 3 ice cubes weekly?

PS Thanks for the info on impatiens

[JenHowlett]

Wow, I guess I really started something here...

Here's my two cents (for what its worth):

My mother has five orchids (ok, so they were originally mine, but when I moved out for college above seven years ago, they became hers). They're all Phals. For everyone who has an "orchidarium" (I didn't know that was even a word until a week or two ago), try not to explode. They've never been fertilized. Ever. Since I left for college, I've repotted them all of twice when home for holidays and both times I had to break the clay pots to remove the orchids because they were so root bound. They grow, year-round, in a south-facing windowsill in non-draining decorative pots and (when she remembers) they get a couple of ice cubes apiece. They flower every year, without fail. The flowers are so big and so numerous that people who come to visit mistake them for silk or plastic- no one believes that they could possibly be real.

I'm not about to say that my mother is the model orchid-grower, but I do rather feel that this anecdote is evidence that orchids can flourish in sub-optimal conditions.

For my part, I soak my orchids about once a week and mix the fertilizer in when I have the time. However, when gone for extended periods of time (say, a two-week vacation), I'm certainly not going to expect whatever 10-yr-old neighbor kid who is coming over every day to feed the fish to go through the process of moving and soaking all of my orchids (not to mention the risks of being dropped, knocked over, etc). When I'm gone, little Jack or Jill is instructed to give them a couple of ice cubes once or twice during the week- I figure cold water is better than no water.

[Royal]

Originally Posted by JenHowlett

I'm not about to say that my mother is the model orchid-grower, but I do rather feel that this anecdote is evidence that orchids can flourish in sub-optimal conditions.

I agree, and thank goodness. My conditions are far from optimal, but my orchids grow despite my mediocre care. The ONLY rule in orchids (or any type of gardening) is do what works for you. You can't argue with results. Cultural guidelines are just that - guidelines. Tweaking your culture to get better results is part of the fun for me. I try to mimic nature as best I can and as long as it's convenient for me. I definitely go against conventional wisdom in some areas, sometimes out of necessity, sometimes out of preference (laziness, if you prefer).

My point is that if you're reading this, you obviously want to be successful or improve your culture. Lots of ways to get the same result - blooms. While watering with an eyedropper or fertilizing with cat urine might work, there might be a better or easier method that yields good results as well.

Bottom line, don't be quick to dismiss an unconventional growing method like watering with ice cubes, but also don't take offense when others state their thoughts on the matter. I still won't put ice on a plant that grows wild in Malaysia, but I won't call you stupid if you want to.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by phalphan1

You didn't answer my questions...
1. Have you ever tried this watering method to prove or disprove watering with ice?

2. Explain why my orchid is flourishing (i.e. new leaves and new flower spikes) after over a year of watering with 3 ice cubes weekly?

PS Thanks for the info on impatiens

1. I'll ask you a question and you must answer truthfully.

What are your cultural parameters?

List everything conceivable, including the general area of where you're from.

2. I have watered using refrigerated water on orchids that are cooler growing.

I own Disa tripetaloides and I've used refrigerated water for them during this past summer. They are still around. These species of orchids are naturally from cooler areas though.

But I don't currently use refrigerated or ice water for any of my Phalaenopsis and I refuse to try it.

a. They are too expensive and they're too rare. The Phals in my collection are mostly species with one natural hybrid.

b. They're all currently grown mounted on wood, so it'd be impossible to do so without making a mess.

I don't recall if I've ever used ice cubes for watering Phalaenopsis in the past.

Did you know that lowering the temperature for a few weeks, then raising it will trigger the plant's response to throw out a spike?

This is one of the reasons why I dismissed the fact that if your Phals are blooming that it is proof positive that your plants are thriving even when you're using ice cubes to water.

But if you're getting healthy new roots, beautiful new leaves, and the plants are throwing out a new spike with strong growing buds, then alright, it's a healthy plant.

However...

It's highly irresponsible to just say it works without giving out your cultural parameters. People need to be able to judge for themselves if the advice handed to them is the right thing to do. Listing your cultural parameters is also a form of verification and a way for people to be able to replicate the same technique.

You gotta remember, if you're giving out the wrong advice (I'm not necessarily saying that you are), and people use it. When people's plants die, it could be coming straight back at you.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by RoyalOrchids

I agree, and thank goodness. My conditions are far from optimal, but my orchids grow despite my mediocre care. The ONLY rule in orchids (or any type of gardening) is do what works for you. You can't argue with results. Cultural guidelines are just that - guidelines. Tweaking your culture to get better results is part of the fun for me. I try to mimic nature as best I can and as long as it's convenient for me. I definitely go against conventional wisdom in some areas, sometimes out of necessity, sometimes out of preference (laziness, if you prefer).

My point is that if you're reading this, you obviously want to be successful or improve your culture. Lots of ways to get the same result - blooms. While watering with an eyedropper or fertilizing with cat urine might work, there might be a better or easier method that yields good results as well.

Bottom line, don't be quick to dismiss an unconventional growing method like watering with ice cubes, but also don't take offense when others state their thoughts on the matter. I still won't put ice on a plant that grows wild in Malaysia, but I won't call you stupid if you want to.

[dounoharm]

just add ice??? that is the craziest marketing ploy to hit the public yet.....it is ingenious actually cause it has worked to the point that eveyone is buying orchids now....and killing em left and right....mainly cause thier water is softened, and softened water kills orchids....the other reason being the orchid roots arent getting the soaking they need to function....only the few roots near the top get water....it may work a few weeks while the orchid blooms but it certainly isnt a recipe for long term care...more people kill plants using that method than succeed with it....i just took in two from my dear sis in law who tried and failed with it....they are near death....cant argue with statistics.....

[Paul]

I have never tried the ice cube method nor do I intend to. As others have said... if it works for you fine, but I too would like you to elaborate on your growing conditions.

I HAVE water phals with extremely cold water and I HAVE seen them decline and die. The 'dying time' occurred mainly over the winter

At that time, I was watering with tap water but didn't have a major issue with salt build up so that was not likely the problem. What I had not really paid attention to was just how terribly cold the water coming out of the tap was. I live in Michigan and my thermostat was set low to save on my electric bill. I am quite convinced that the cold water couple with the cooler conditions is what did the plants in. At an OS meeting, a speaker addressed this issue. My first response was "Oh s@#$!" for what he described matched what I was seeing. After that I switched to warming up the water just so it wasn't frigid and hadn't had a reoccurance of the issue.

[JustAddIceOrchids]

Hello - Watering with 3 ice cubes a week per orchid plant in a pot is a safe and easy way to care for phalaenopsis orchids, which with the calculated measurement of ice cubes, helps prevent overwatering.

The ice cube watering method is only recommended for Just Add Ice Orchids, as other orchids may be sensitive to ice and 3 ice cubes per week may not be sufficient. However, you're welcome to experiment with this watering method with other orchids, especially if your orchids are Phalaenopsis.

If you've had success with caring for your orchids using a different method, then feel free to continue with your regular routine, although we encourage you to try this watering method for yourself!

Just Add Ice ORCHIDS