Hi - I need advice on the growth of my orchids

[Ross]

Maybe at this time of year. For the simple fact the sun comes up so far to the west in our area. Seems like the days sun shines (few indeed) it doesn't hit the south windows until late morning, but continues on to the west. Yes, you might try that and see. When the sun is not shining it won't make any difference. I'd still opt for a few compact florescents to supplement light. Here's my setup The top two next to the windows are 55 watt (consumption - not equiv.) The front one is 105 watt consumption.

[hermie3rd]

Okay..I have moved them into the kitchen!! I figure I'll keep them there for a little while and see what happens. If they seem to be on the same track then I'll probably invest in lights. Thanks!

[CodiMN]

Cool! Experimenting is a good thing Hermie! I remember one of my 'chids LOVING the kitchen! Must have loved the busy room and getting attention?!

[hermie3rd]

Well hopefully they will do something!! Another question - I'm planning to repot both - any thoughts when is the best time to do this? I bought an orchid book, covering different types of orchids and what they need (so I'm prepared when I buy my next one) but it's very vague and just says "based on conditions" blah blah blah. I was thinking of repotting late March/early April, but wanted to see what everyone thought. Also, I'm currently using a water-soluble fertilizer (right now I'm feeding about once a month, then just plain water) that has a 19-31-17 balance. Is this okay?? Or should I invest in something else? Thanks again guys!! I love learning all this stuff from people who have experienced it!!

[Ross]

Originally Posted by hermie3rd

Well hopefully they will do something!! Another question - I'm planning to repot both - any thoughts when is the best time to do this? I bought an orchid book, covering different types of orchids and what they need (so I'm prepared when I buy my next one) but it's very vague and just says "based on conditions" blah blah blah. I was thinking of repotting late March/early April, but wanted to see what everyone thought. Also, I'm currently using a water-soluble fertilizer (right now I'm feeding about once a month, then just plain water) that has a 19-31-17 balance. Is this okay?? Or should I invest in something else? Thanks again guys!! I love learning all this stuff from people who have experienced it!!

Take a look at the "Feeding Your Plants" section at Ray's web site First Rays' Free Info He pretty well covers everything there.

As for repotting, the general rule is to repot when you see evidence of new or growing roots (they have green root tips generally). A few board members repot every new plant when it comes homes. This is so you can check the condition of the roots. I fall into the latter category most of the time.

[Singingirl96]

I would put it in the kitchen. It is obviously not getting enough light where you have it now. Sometimes just changing the location will make a big difference.
As for your Phal, I noticed you have it in a plastic pot inside the terracotta pot. I would repot it. Put it in a terracotta orchid pot (has holes on the side) with phal mix as the medium (lowe's has great phal mix). Phals are easy to have rebloom, so it might be as simple as that. Don't let it sit in water. Make sure you get the right medium. It needs to drain freely. Trim all dead roots.
Also, your plants need to be fed on a regular basis. Use Orchid plant food weakly weekly.
When the plants are really healthy use bloom booster food in the spring so they start to spike. I started using it last month and two of my phals are spiking.
Good luck.

[quiltergal]

Plastic pots aren't bad to use. I have nearly all of my plants in clear plastic orchid pots that have slits in the sides and loads of drainage in the bottoms. I wouldn't recommend the terracotta orchid pots unless you like to water a lot. Water evaporates much more quickly from terracotta because it's so porous. You also can't see the condition of the roots in solid pot. Clear pots not only allow you to see your roots, but you can also see how much moisture is still in the pot. When you can't see beads of moisture on the sides or bottom then you know it's time to water. Plastic pots are also cheap, and reuseable.

As for fertilizing weakly, weekly.....how much nitrogen does that give your plants? It's not a very scientific way to feed. Many here (myself included) follow Ray's advice and feed at 125ppm of N. There is a fert calculator on his website .

Phals need a dip in temps during the winter to initiate spikes. Somewhere in the neighborhood of mid to low 60s.

[Tommyr]

I grow my Oncs. In a west window mid fall through spring until it warms up enough to put them outside for the season. They get bright light and a little early morning Sun only. I feed them miracle grow every 2-3 waterings. In the fall I leave them out to get some cool night which help get the spikes started. I grow them in pure LFS moss and water when nearly dry.

They've flowered for me the past 3 years now.

Tom

[Ross]

Originally Posted by quiltergal

Plastic pots aren't bad to use. I have nearly all of my plants in clear plastic orchid pots that have slits in the sides and loads of drainage in the bottoms.

I have been moving mine over to clear plastic pots with slots. It's great to be able to check condition of roots and how et the medium is before one waters.

[Tommyr]

Originally Posted by Ross

I have been moving mine over to clear plastic pots with slots. It's great to be able to check condition of roots and how et the medium is before one waters.

I like the clear pots as well.