Feed Me! - Orchid Board

charlesf6 · #1 10-01-2016, 11:25 AM

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Ok I have had my plants for a few weeks now and just kind of touched base with their feelings are as toward light & air conditions along with watering hole habits (more drying out periods than over hydration).

But what do I do about food? I haven't given that a lot of thought yet until I purchased Pollock, my 3rd plant and it was sitting right next to a box of orchid food.

We are getting colder real fast here in N.Y., summer has left!
Should I offer them food before the winter sets in and the days become much shorter? Thanks in advance.

silken · #2 10-01-2016, 12:17 PM

A common consensus among orchid growers is to feed a balanced fertilizer weakly, weekly. What that means is 1/2 to 1/4 the recommended dosage on the package. The weekly part means add it when you water them. Of course if you only water every 10 days, then that is when the weak ferts would be added. And once a month flush the pot well with clear water to flush out excess fertilizer salts. Orchid roots are considered more sensitive to fertilizer than other plants and don't get too much in nature.

charlesf6 · #3 10-01-2016, 12:48 PM

Does their food expire? I found an older container under my sink.

silken · #4 10-01-2016, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by charlesf6

Does their food expire? I found an older container under my sink.

I don't think mine does. If it has gone all crystalized or as a liquid some components may not dissolve properly but if It dissolves, I think it should be fine.

estación seca · #5 10-01-2016, 03:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by charlesf6

Does their food expire? I found an older container under my sink.

The mineral content doesn't expire. Nitrogen compounds, however, may decompose to nitrogen gas, and you might deliver less nitrogen to the plant than you think. The higher the storage temperature the greater the likelihood of this, and it happens far faster in liquid solutions.

This is a big reason why osmotic fertilizer pellets like Osmocote should not be stored outside in hot sheds or garages, and why they don't work well in hot climates such as mine.

charlesf6 · #6 10-01-2016, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jkofferdahl

I THINK that translates into: A new package of fertilizer costs just a few bucks. Problem solved.

Yes

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Luizacft

Talked to an orchid grower recently and he told me to use all types of orchid food during a month. It means growth, rooting and blooming interpolated. Flush every few weeks. I. Case you've got Vandas he told to use a very weak dosage sometimes a day / everyday)

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Now I am confused all over again

!

estación seca · #7 10-01-2016, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by charlesf6

Now I am confused all over again

!

The orchid grower in Brazil probably has excellent conditions for growing orchids, and the only thing missing is supplemental fertilizer. In these circumstances it hardly matters what be used. Under other circumstances the type of fertilizer may matter.

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Quote:

Originally Posted by charlesf6

Mine are Phal's only at the moment.... Oh I like to have leafy green growth so maybe I should never use this stuff?

Do you mean you don't want flowers? I can't remember where you live. Many Phal hybrids are triggered to bloom by several weeks of average temperature drop during the fall or early winter. If there's adequate fertilizer and the proper trigger they will bloom. If there's insufficient fertilizer and the proper trigger they will probably still bloom, but not so magnificently. If there's insufficient fertilizer and insufficient trigger they probably won't bloom.

charlesf6 · #8 10-01-2016, 12:56 PM

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Just didn't know how they would take to "leftovers"
I know that I don't care too much for them.

Orchid Whisperer · #9 10-02-2016, 01:01 PM

(Somehow double-posted; please see my next post)

u bada · #10 10-01-2016, 12:59 PM

i love how the only tag for this post is "feed" lol

Yeah, I'll fertilize things weekly, weakly year round, but i give a little more fert ratio in spring and summer... and take it down around now. still pretty warm here, so i may keep fert a bit higher for a couple more weeks or this whole month.

That said, there are plants that grow year round (many pleurothallis) and also those that grow mainly in all (some sophronitis for instance) so those you can keep on a regular fert or sure year around...

those that go dormant, (some dendrobiums, catasetums), you can cut off fert, and reduce watering fairly soon, when leaves or shed, etc.