Seedlings and humidity, over the winter

[cythaenopsis]

I have three orchid seedlings (encyclia, cattelya, oncidium) that I've been nurturing for almost two months now. They're doing well, overall. However, I'm worried about the winter time, when I'll be keeping all windows shut and temperatures in my apartment about 55 degrees when I'm gone for the full day.

I've generally heard that humidity trays aren't very effective and that the real deal is to use a humidifier. However, in the interest of saving power, I try not to run access appliances and such when I'm not home. I didn't use one this past winter and the one phal that I had seemed to do just fine (it bloomed in the spring with more than double the flowers of last fall), but I'm concerned about the other orchid species and the fact that they're very young.

Would creating an enclosure for the plants be a good idea, to help maintain a higher level of humidity? I've seen nursery trays, but the dome covers for them are going to be too short for my plants. Also... the domes look to be completely solid, no air vents. So, I'm thinking of creating my own enclosures using clear liter bottles. Has anyone here done something like this? If so, what's a good design that works with adequate ventilation? Thanks.

[Zoi2]

I use bell jars, Nenella uses the 5 gallon drinking water bottles. I'll try to find a link to her pictures for you.
Joann

[Zoi2]

I hope I got the link right, if not it is number 416 on about page 11.
Haraella retrocalla (Project 8 - Spring 2009)
Hope this helps.
Joann

[cythaenopsis]

Thanks for the link, Joann! The post number is right, but I think the page number comes up differently depending upon the browser. For me, it was page 42. Here's a direct link--> #416.

Really great idea. I think that a number of containers could do the trick. Nenelle's idea of mounting them to hanging blocks of wood/bark/cork looks terrific!

[Zoi2]

I'm glad you found it.
One of the better aspects of orchid additction is that it lets your creativity run wild
Joann

[keithrs]

I have several trays of seedlings and I use the Mondi domes but I add a computer fan to each dome..... You can go to any computer store and they can set you up. Computer fan draw very little amperage. If you use a enclosure you will need air circulation or your plants will rot. The bonus to seedling trays is that you can add a heat mat under it.

Mondi - Mondidome Propagation Dome - Propagation

Orchidkarma has a very good blog. In there she has a little section on deflasking seedling..... I know your not deflasking but her set up to keep the humidity up works!

Deflasking orchids « Orchid Karma :: An orchid blog
Or you can alway build a terrarium!!!!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

For something that small, you can also try a deli cup they sell for transporting reptiles and amphibians.

[cythaenopsis]

Thanks, Keith. I like that idea of the cooling fan. I looked on-line and I see many USB mini fans available. You can get adapters to plug USB devices into A/C outlets. I wonder if this might be a great way of going about it. Just rig it up to a timer for periodic ventilation, and you're all set.

[Wjs2nd]

I use the same kind of setup that keithrs uses and my seedlings love it! I also put hydrotron on the bottom of the seed tray and put net pot on top of that.

[keithrs]

Originally Posted by Wjs2nd

I use the same kind of setup that keithrs uses and my seedlings love it! I also put hydrotron on the bottom of the seed tray and put net pot on top of that.