Basic Winter/Spring Orchid Care

[a.ros2092]

Hello everyone! I just joined Orchid Board and I'm a new orchid enthusiast. I live in USDA zone 7a in central New Jersey. I've done a ton of research on orchid care, from fertilizers to watering to the pots and air circulation, so I feel like I have a good idea of what I am doing. But I recently bought my very first orchids. I now have 6 of them, all in bloom (except for one Fire Star epidendrum where the blooms fell off in transit to the store :/) and I was just wondering what I should be doing for them right now. Mainly with fertilizer. I have Feed Me! 13-3-15 fertilizer that I was going to start using weakly, weekly, but I have read that it's best to cut back on fertilizer when they are in bloom and to resume it weekly once the blooms fall off. Any suggestions? I've had them for about a week now and I've watered them once, some twice. Of course I watered them thoroughly in the sink first thing in the morning and let all of the water drain out. And to be specific, I have a Phalaenopsis, a pink/purple Asconopsis (I am aware these are very tricky to keep happy), a Sea Mary Snow King Nobile Dendrobium, a Fire Star Epidendrum, an Oncidiae Intergeneric Hybrid, and a Burrageara Nelly Isler Swiss Beauty. Any tips and care instructions for these guys right now would be much appreciated!!

[cbuchman]

Check out the AOS culture pages. These are a great place to start.

AOS Culture Sheets

[WhiteRabbit]

I fertilize the same while in bloom.

[Optimist]

They all have different culture.

[james mickelso]

Basically they need high light levels if you have it or moderate if you don't. No direct sunlight after 8 or before 5. Warmth. 60-80 degrees f. Water when dry. Don't keep them wet. The roots will rot. Feed them at every watering but 1/4 what the package says. Run water through them before feeding. Enjoy them. Keep coming here for some very good info and remember the only dumb ? is the one you don't ask.

[a.ros2092]

Thanks! So my fertilizer says to use 3/4 teaspoon per gallon in the fall/winter and to fertilize weakly, weekly (over 3 out of every 4 weeks). Is this 3/4 teaspoon strength the dilute strength or should I dilute that even more to maybe 1/4 teaspoon or a half teaspoon.

[james mickelso]

I'd use it at a rate of 1/4 teaspoon per gallon of water. Most of the fertilizer you throw on orchids gets wasted out the bottom of the pot anyway.

[a.ros2092]

Oh ok, sounds good. Ill bring it down to that strength the next gallon I prepare. Should I increase the concentration during the growing season or leave it at that year round?

[cbuchman]

If you want to be more specific with your fertilizer rates, FirstRays has a calculator (Fertilizer PPM Calculator). Ray has a lot of good orchid nutrition information on this website. It's a great resource!