Cymbidium Orchids: How am I doing?

[josienf]

Hi Guys!

I thought that I would upload some pictures and describe my conditions just to get an idea of how I'm doing. I have two cymbidium orchids and I'm really trying to keep them healthy and help them thrive! The first photo is of the newer and healthier of the two and the orchid in the second photo I've had for right at a year. It's looking a little rough but I think that it's still has some hope!

Position/Light:

Both are placed near a southwest window (it's the brightest in the house), but they are not directly in the windowsill. I believe that the light level is ok, but not certain. My leaves are a light green (you can see from the picture) and have a few crispy brown ends. Also, there is no fan in the room, so no air movement. Should this be an issue?

Watering:

I believe that I may neglect them when it comes to watering. They never seem to completely dry out so I'm scared of over watering them. I've placed a wooden skewer in the mix to help me tell if they are dry. I usually only water once every two-three weeks. When I water, I take them outside and use about one liter of water per orchid (is that enough). I do not let them sit in water or even a catch pan.

Humidity:

I live in Georgia, where humidity is usually NOT a problem. I believe that out average is 86% for the day and 56% for the night. Of course, this is outside humidity and I'm not sure how this effects the inside. I've closed off the vent to the room that they are in (guest bedroom) to save energy and to possibly raise the humidity? I'm not sure if that helps or not.

New Ideas:

The healthier plant has finished blooming, so I am going to cut the spike down to about an inch, is this correct?

I thought about starting with a fertilizer every couple of waterings. Is there a specific type I should use for cymbidiums? I found a basic 20-14-13 at the store, would this work?

I've also thought about making a humidity tray to set them on, but I'm not sure if I'll even need more humidity. Does anyone know how I can judge my indoor humidity without buying a gadget?

Finally, I think that I might start placing my plants outdoors (in the shade) for a few hours during the afternoon. I would leave them there, but I'm afraid that someone will steal them. I don't believe there will be that much of a temp change for the plants just because we don't run currently run the air in the room. In the summer time when the temp is 90+, I'm sure there will be a 10-15ish temp change. Does that sound healthy?


Thank you soooo much for reading this super long post! I really hope that I'm off to a good start, but I honestly have no idea what I'm doing! Hopefully the pictures will show up! If not, I'm really sorry! Thanks again!

[Vanda lover]

I think that you are worrying too much about the humidity. Cymbidium are pretty tolerant that way. I had mine in a small house that was heated with a woodstove, and even with freezing temperatures outside dropping the humidity, it bloomed beautifully. It is important to give them as much light as you can without burning them too much. They need the sun to ripen their bulbs and they need a drop in the night temperatures. Towards the end of summer, this is especially important.
For fertilizer, I would feed every watering throughout the summer with an orchid food, and flush good with clear water once a month or so. They don't like to dry out completly, but should be watered more during the growing period. A time release fertilizer such as nutricote or smartcoat is also a good way to fertilize. You may have to have your plants next to an open window at night, in order to get enough of a temperature drop, if you can't put them outside.

[WhiteRabbit]

brown leaf tips can be either the leaf is dying (they do shed old foliage), or too much fertilizer built up in the media. If you haven't, give the pots a good flush with lots of water.

The media should not be allowed to dry out. It's been my experience that Cyms are hard to over-water so long as the media and pot drain, and they aren't left sitting in water - but it's dryer here than Georgia. But mine do ok sitting out in the rain, even if we have had lots of rain. But if you have skewers in the pots, just water before media is dry, but avoid keeping it soggy.

I'm not sure if the light indoors will be sufficient to get them to bloom, or not. They do like quite a bit of light. Outside when temps are ok, is usually best. Unless they are warmth tolerant Cyms, they also will want a period of cool nights (50F or less) in the fall to initiate spikes.

[Cym Ladye]

My advice it to stop worrying so much, especially in regard to humidity in your area, and just let them grow....OUTDOORS! Standard Cyms will not do well growing or blooming in the house all year long. Leave them outside in 50/50 sun, ie morning sun and afternoon shade as long as the temps are above freezing. These plants are very special to you but I doubt anyone will attempt to steal a Cym. out of bloom.

Fertilize weekly/weakly with a balanced fertilizer, 13-13-13 or similar, all year and allow the water to totally flush through the pot each time. Another fertilizer option is to use a 6 month slow release granule applied twice a year to the top of the pot. Then each time you water with regular water, (or it rains) you automatically fertilize and do not have to mix up a fresh solution each time.

I hate to say it, but both plants appear to need repotting or potting up. The bulbs on the first plant show shriveling and on the second, there are not enough green leaves on the remaining bulbs and the new growth is not vigourous. This indicates a problem with water getting to the roots either because of a loss of roots due to too much water or not enough water. Check through the threads on the Cymbidium part of this site and you will find all sorts of great information for all areas of the world.

To check the condition of the roots, gently tip the plants part way out of the pots and see if the roots are firm, soggy, shriveled or just dry to the touch. This should lead you in the right direction of what to do next.



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