Trying to improve the growing conditions for my orchids.

[silken]

Remember to let the media get fairly dry before watering. And if you have some kelp (seaweed, found in hydroponic stores) it really does help induce root growth.

[BrandonMD]

for the tip.

Would you recommend that I get something like KelpMax to spray on the roots every few days?

[silken]

KelpMax or any kelp product will help.

[bil]

Originally Posted by BrandonMD

for the tip.

Would you recommend that I get something like KelpMax to spray on the roots every few days?

Not every day. Too much can cause flowers to be deformed. It needs to be diluted.

[BrandonMD]

Update 03/28/2016

It looks like I'm making some progress. One of the Phals has new root growth.

I setup a small aquarium with 2" of water. I have an ultrasonic mister and a small fan to circulate the air. I elevated both orchids on trays above the water so they don't get wet. The air circulation is enough to prevent any condensation on the leaves or pots. I have the mister on a timer so its runs 9 hours a day along with the light. I adjusted the light so its hanging 20" above the pots. The humidity level now ranges between 85%-90%.

I ordered a bottle of KelpMAX and Orchiata Bark with larger pieces which should be arrive within the week. I'll keep you updated.

Thanks for all the advice! Feel free to chime in with any more recommendations or adjustments that I should make.

[howze01]

Not sure what you've changed, or haven't changed, with the fertilizing, but I'd say a teaspoon per gallon at every watering is a bit much. During the growing season, I fertilize mine with about 1/2 a teaspoon/gallon every other week. When not in their growth phase, I fertilize at most once a month, or when I remember. For me, I've found that less is more when it comes to ferts and orchids.

Congrats on the progress so far! I love new roots and leaves almost as much as a spike!

[estación seca]

Hi Brandon, it seems to me you're working way too hard at this. Phals are very easy to grow and bloom on windowsills by careless gardeners so long as they don't overwater. My guess would be yours are doing well because you moved them farther from the lights. They were getting too much light before. The aquarium setup will be good for other orchids you might become interested in, but the phals don't need it.

Many people fertilize with a very low concentration of fertilizer at every watering. Get used to thinking about fertilizing in parts per million (PPM) of nitrogen. When I say low concentration of nitrogen, I mean in the range of 20-45 PPM.

There is a large amount of information on fertilizing on Ray's Web site here:
Feeding and Watering - First Rays LLC

and there is a calculator for determining how much fertilizer to add to water to yield a desired PPM of nitrogen here:
Nitrogen Management Calculator - First Rays LLC

[BrandonMD]

Thanks "howze01" and "estación seca" for the information.

For now I stopped fertilizing all together. After doing more research I see that phals don't need much of any fertilizer. The aquarium is a temporary setup until they recover. They are doing much better now. I plan on getting more phals and maybe some other types of orchids once I get the hang of taking care of them. I see my initial fault was too much water causing root rot in a pot that didn't allow my Phals to breathe. Thanks again for all the great advice, much appreciated.