Joy and Sorrow

[PegS]

I bought this at Orchids of Hausserman's.

Do you think I should change the potting mix now?

I put my orchids on humidity trays and (to make sure the environment was sound for them there) placed both a Temp and Humidity guage in the window. The humidity hovers between 35-50%.

[PegS]

I bought this at Hausserman's.

Do you think I should change the media now?

I have just bark mix.

The humidity (they are on trays and the Humidity guage is usually hovering between 35-50%)

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Yes, I think the media should be changed out asap. I wouldn't even bother waiting till spring. I just bought a Vanda coerulescens from Hausermann's, and the media was rather old and needed to be changed out, I suspect the same goes for the media that your Chaubardia heteroclita is in.

There's a strong possibility that there's quite a bit of damaged roots in there. Like I said, this group of plants can easily succumb to root rot. The clue is with the browning leaf tips, that's a classic sign of root damage in the plants belonging to the Huntleya clade.

Also, the humidity the plants are exposed to is quite low. Look up the places where they come from, and you'll find that the humidity is usually around 60% to 80%.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

I forgot to mention...

They don't like too strong a concentration of fertilizer.

If you've ever grown Pleurothallids such as Masdevallias, Draculas, and Pleurothallis, etc., the concentration of fertilizer the Huntleya should receive is closer to these group of orchids.

To help things along, I also recommend using RO/DI water, (if you haven't already).

Should you be using tap water instead...

Tap water tends to be too high in dissolved mineral content for these kinds of plants, which will also lead to the leaf tip die back you're seeing with the Huntleya heteroclita.

When you're dealing with the pseudobulbless Zygopetalinae, it's best to use RO/DI.

[PegS]

I changed out the media...save for the top, it looked like dark soil but the roots looked healthy. I already watered it this morning so I guess I won't water it again until next Monday....ankd then with D/O water!

I can't get the humidity above 50 %, so I don't know what else I can do....I have my ghost in a vase with a little water in it and it doesn't look any worse for wear (last winter I killed 3 and then this one I summered outside and it did well and now I think I have the right place for it)

So I guess now it' just a wait-and-see game.

Thanks again,

Peg

[PegS]

I have 2 Masvedallias and they are doing we'll. One has 2 new leaves coming!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Nice! What kinds of Masdevallias are they?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by PegS

I changed out the media...save for the top, it looked like dark soil but the roots looked healthy. I already watered it this morning so I guess I won't water it again until next Monday....ankd then with D/O water!

Good to know that the roots are okay.

Originally Posted by PegS

I can't get the humidity above 50 %, so I don't know what else I can do....I have my ghost in a vase with a little water in it and it doesn't look any worse for wear (last winter I killed 3 and then this one I summered outside and it did well and now I think I have the right place for it)

Tried a humidifier yet? That might work better than the humidity trays.

Originally Posted by PegS

So I guess now it' just a wait-and-see game.

Yeah...

Originally Posted by PegS

Thanks again,

Peg

No problem! You're welcome.