Leaving the kids at home

[Wathepleela]

I’m getting out of town for a week, leaving my herd of “elephants” (rhys in Thai) unattended to at home. It’s spring time now in Thailand, which means the sun is not too harsh, but several leaves young and old already got sunburned after inadvertently given an afternoon sun bath recently. I will put the bunch in the greenhouse (ie bathroom with window opened out to the balcony) while I’m away. Given the local humidity and air circulation (balcony is 200 degree SW with lots of wind coming in day and night,) I hope the kids will be ok home alone while daddy is taking a much needed vacation. Extra measure would be leaving several plastic basins (their normal bathtub) filled to the brim on the bathroom floor for additional humidity.


Is there anything else I can do? This is the first time I take leave and I don’t want to come home to unpleasant surprises, shock and mourning... Any suggestions and (optimistic or not) predictions will be much appreciated. Thanks,

[WhiteRabbit]

[theloyalplum]

I suppose rigging a drip irrigation system would be too tall of an order. What I usually do is bring all of my plants to a manageable area and water extra thoroughly right before I leave. A mister/sprinkler is set to go on every other day or so for additional water depending on weather forecasts and whatnot. My logic is to make them as comfortable as possible. They just need to survive a week until I can make it back and apologise. Maybe this helps? Maybe not? I sure hope it does.

[Wathepleela]

Originally Posted by theloyalplum

I suppose rigging a drip irrigation system would be too tall of an order. What I usually do is bring all of my plants to a manageable area and water extra thoroughly right before I leave. A mister/sprinkler is set to go on every other day or so for additional water depending on weather forecasts and whatnot. My logic is to make them as comfortable as possible. They just need to survive a week until I can make it back and apologise. Maybe this helps? Maybe not? I sure hope it does.

Thanks theloyalplum for the suggestion, I appreciated that. However my living situation is the usual Thai-style apartment ie room + separate bathroom + balcony (which also poses as the clothes drying area - people don't use dryers here)... The only thing I could - and have rigged was a hanging line between the airconditioner rod and the water plumbing structure from the floor above. That's why I keep telling myself that a time will come when I need to move to a proper house preferrably with a terrace when our family reaches the "critical mass"

Anyway, I am just gonna brave it and see which one will tough it out which one won't. I believe them being elephants won't die out on me after a week. But they might sulk (which for me is a fate worse than death!) However being a newbie, I give myself the permission to experiment and learn by trial and error. Who knows facing benign neglect they might thrive even better and I will come home to a bathroom, uh, I mean greenhouse full of new growth and maybe even a spike - or two? On verra (pardon my french it means "we'll see")

Again thanks for the suggestion which one day in our new home will come in very handy indeed.

[jcec1]

I would get an old towel and soak it and put it in the basin and put the orchids in it, and leave the orchids in a shaded position. I did this when I lived in Texas in the summer, and the plants were fine for two weeks.

[Wathepleela]

Originally Posted by WhiteRabbit

Hi Sonya, thanks for the bump. Better yet, is it possible to move this thread of mine to the "Vanda and others (rhys, etc._)" subforum? I was thinking the folks there might have more specific info to care for the rhys and will be more forthcoming with their input?
Thanks

---------- Post added at 07:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:19 PM ----------

Originally Posted by jcec1

I would get an old towel and soak it and put it in the basin and put the orchids in it, and leave the orchids in a shaded position. I did this when I lived in Texas in the summer, and the plants were fine for two weeks.

Thanks jcec1: great idea!

[judith_arquette]

Good luck! They might surprise you though, I went on vacation last month for a week (leaving a friend in charge with zero orchid experience) and came home to new growths on several of mine. Enjoy your time away and try not to worry too much

[Wathepleela]

Originally Posted by judith_arquette

Good luck! They might surprise you though, I went on vacation last month for a week (leaving a friend in charge with zero orchid experience) and came home to new growths on several of mine. Enjoy your time away and try not to worry too much

Thanks Judith, I'll do that!

[Wathepleela]

Upon my return, they all seemed happy (NOT because I’m back) but because they’d had the run of the house so to speak while I was away. New rootlets shot up everywhere I couldn’t even keep count. Even my hybrid vanda (which members on this board lament for the fact that they would put out one leaf for the whole year, and that a maybe) sprouted a whole new baby.

Maybe I should pretend I'm going away again and ignore them for days on ends, that way I might get a spike or two!

[rbarata]

Maybe I should pretend I'm going away again and ignore them for days on ends...

Just keep the same conditions...but stay there to monitor them.