growing orchid inside of a container/vase

[Maxy24]

I have had this one Pluerothallid for a year now. When I received it it was in great condition, looked like it had recently finished blooming, had nice plump green leaves. It very quickly suffered in my care. I've tried out different substrates and while some made it seem slightly better it continued to look very unhappy with dark wrinkled leaves, dropping them every now and then. Twice (both after changing substrate to something that held more water) it started to develop stems for flowers but they would just stop growing, never becoming more than tiny green shoots at the base of the leaf. Otherwise it has had absolutely no growth (no leaves or roots).

I know my conditions are not good for this type of orchid, much of the year it is too hot for it to be happy, and there is almost never high humidity. I tried one of those humidity trays but it didn't seem to help the plant any.

I had seen pictures of small orchids like this growing inside of glass jars or vases and it looked like one way to boost humidity. I wanted to try it to see if it made any difference in the plant's condition. I have a 15 inch tall, rectangular, plastic container. It is thin, maybe 4-5 inches wide, too thin for the orchid's pot to fit into. But I just wanted to do this little experiment and see if it even helped any. So I put about an inch and half of quarter sized rocks at the bottom of the container then took the orchid and it's sphagnum moss (lightly packed around roots) and put it down inside this contained on top of the rocks. I then poured in some water, wetting the moss and filling the rocks with water. The water in the rocks does not come up high enough to touch the moss but it's evaporation keeps it wet.

So far I have put the lid on the container during the day, with a tiny crack to let some air in. At night I uncover it completely. It has been in there for a grand total of 3 days and the change is dramatic. It looks so much happier! Nearly all of the wrinkles in the leaves are gone, wrinkles that have been there for a solid year.

But here are my concerns:

The moss has stayed very wet these past three days and I'm not sure how long it can stay like that before roots start to rot. I'm thinking of dumping the water in the rocks to let the moss start to dry out a little.

I don't know if it's happier because of humidity or because the moss has stayed so wet. What do you think? It was previously in a clay pot with the moss, so it dried fairly quickly. I did not allow it to get bone dry, but it has never stayed sopping wet like it appears now for more than a day.

Obviously I don't have fans or anything for air circulation, it's a small container. Should I be leaving the lid off all of the time? I'm afraid doing that will eliminate the increased humidity.


I guess I'm just looking for advice on how I can incorporate this container idea for humidity without rotting my plant.

If anyone needs clarification I can post a picture later.

[Leafmite]

I had the same trouble growing my haraella rectrocalla in my indoor winter climate. It was almost dead when I decided on this set up. The moss has really taken off, as you can see.

[My Green Pets]

Im no expert but this looks like a job for advanced discussion.

In either case i'd leave the top off until the medium dried enough to get out of the worry zone. then put it back on but leave some space for air flow and water with caution.

[Maxy24]

I wanted to give an update.

I removed a little bit more moss so it was VERY loose around the roots. I water it whenever the top half of the moss goes dry and there is none in the bottom of the container (among the rocks). I no longer water it enough to fill up the rock area, I just try to wet the moss. I continue to leave the lid on during the day and off over night. And guess what? It's growing new leaves! Four of them to be exact. It's the first time it's ever showed signs of life, I'm so happy!

[Orquiadicto]

Congratulations. Seems to work well for you. Could you post a picture please? I've got a very big empty glass vase and perhaps I could grow something in it.

[Edward Brookes]

since your container is plastic, perhaps drill a drainage hole which would allow you to drain away water after a good soaking period, & have real control over the climate in the container.