Daily watering for phalaenopsis

[bdelfiero]

I set up one of my phalaenopsis plants without any orchid mix. I placed it in one large piece of bark and hang it upside down (same as its natural habitat)

My question is, should i water them daily since the roots are exposed to the air and easily gets dry every time i water them in the morning?

I will appreciate your advise.

Thank you.

[RosieC]

I think you should water every day if you have the orchid mounted. It can depend on your conditions, but if the roots are drying fast it will probably need it.

Phals do like plenty of water as long as they get enough air as well. If you have your orchid mounted it's roots will get lots of air and you will need to make sure it also gets enough water.

I don't have a mounted Phal, but I have a mounted Miltonia. I water that every day, sometimes twice a day in the summer.

[trdyl]

Yes, if mounted they should be watered daily. During the hotter months you would need to water twice a day. The leaves will tell you if they are getting enough water. If they start getting wrinkled and you have a good root system then they more water.

[bdelfiero]

Thank you guys for your wonderful advise..

[Duane McDowell]

When you water, be sure to water the roots until the white part turns green. After watering, fertilize with a weak solution (1 tsp/gal) of a balanced fertilizer. With mounted culture, the fertilizer is especially important. Since you are soaking the roots at each watering, you can fertilize after each watering without endangering the plant. The watering flushes away all the excess salts. That said, if you need to water twice a day during the summer, you would only fertilize after the morning watering.

[bdelfiero]

Hi Duane Mcdowell, I am using a 5-4-4 ratio fertilizer..is it safe enough to use every second watering to mounted orchids? Thank you..