How to soak multiple orchids?

[DesignerofBeauty]

Hello All!

I have seven potted orchids and two mounted orchids. I'm planning on transitioning to the soaking method of watering instead of using my faucet sprayer.

I'm wondering how to do this in a manner that prevents diseases. I understand letting three orchids soak in the sink, using the same bath of water is a bad idea. So therefore, I'll need to soak the orchids one at a time. After I've soaked one orchid, can I just let the water drain down the sink? Then, fill it up again for the other orchid? OR do I need to disinfect the sink with Lysol? Or, would Physan 20 work better (which, according to the label seems to be quite dangerous to use. It could be just to protect their liability, however.)

How do you soak multiple orchids?

[jkofferdahl]

Why do you want to soak them? Is there a problem with your plants that you are trying to recover them from? Has someone (wrongly) told you that it's beneficial? I would encourage you to reconsider this method.

I'm not a person who soaks. (OK, I just received a severely dried plant and yes, I DID soak it in a sugar water solution. It was ER care.) Orchid roots absorb what they need just fine without soaking. The media in which they grow is there more to insulate than to provide water to the plant, so you don't have to soak it. Once the roots are wet from the water which simply flows across it you're done, and the time the plant sits soaking is time that the roots are deprived of air circulation. While they dry fastest, I don't even soak mounted orchids, preferring to simply water them twice a day when necessary. Essentially, soaking your plants is about as far from how an orchid is watered in nature as you can get. Plenty of problems and no benefits, and time-consuming to boot.

So, if you're going to go ahead and subject your orchids to this form of water torture (I liken it to waterboarding a prisoner) then yes, there are vital steps to take. Never soak two plants together; doing so can allow pests, viruses, and whatever to move between plants. After soaking a plant you have to completely sterilize the soaking container. I think bleach is your best bet. In about a month you'll have spent enough on bleach to have otherwise purchased another nice orchid.

[jcec1]

I am a soaker and have each orchid in a cache pot, so no sharing of water. I soak for a couple of hours and have had no problems with that. If I'm fertilising them, I then collect the leftovers and use it in the garden.

[DesignerofBeauty]

Well, about two months ago I discovered that this cattleya orchid of mine had some spider-like mold and root rot. I actually believe that you responded to my thread, jkofferdahl. I was overwatering my orchid. As a result of this incident, I decided to stick to a weekly watering schedule. Lo and behold, my orchid is now showing signs of dehydration. I don't know how to please this plant! I beginning to realize more and more each day that growing orchids does have a learning curve.

I read that soaking may be more beneficial.

Here's my poor dehydrated plant:
Is my cattleya hybrid otchod dehydrated? - Album on Imgur

So, perhaps it's best for me to soak it for now, until it regains some health? I'll continue to water as usual then, using my faucet sprayer.

Originally Posted by jkofferdahl

Why do you want to soak them? Is there a problem with your plants that you are trying to recover them from? Has someone (wrongly) told you that it's beneficial? I would encourage you to reconsider this method.

I'm not a person who soaks. (OK, I just received a severely dried plant and yes, I DID soak it in a sugar water solution. It was ER care.) Orchid roots absorb what they need just fine without soaking. The media in which they grow is there more to insulate than to provide water to the plant, so you don't have to soak it. Once the roots are wet from the water which simply flows across it you're done, and the time the plant sits soaking is time that the roots are deprived of air circulation. While they dry fastest, I don't even soak mounted orchids, preferring to simply water them twice a day when necessary. Essentially, soaking your plants is about as far from how an orchid is watered in nature as you can get. Plenty of problems and no benefits, and time-consuming to boot.

So, if you're going to go ahead and subject your orchids to this form of water torture (I liken it to waterboarding a prisoner) then yes, there are vital steps to take. Never soak two plants together; doing so can allow pests, viruses, and whatever to move between plants. After soaking a plant you have to completely sterilize the soaking container. I think bleach is your best bet. In about a month you'll have spent enough on bleach to have otherwise purchased another nice orchid.

[bil]

I cannot see the point of soaking. Plus, there are all the problems associated with it.

I use a 5 litre spray. I spray the medium as evenly as poss, until the water runs out of the bottom.

As for mounts, they get a once a day spray (with the exception of the vanda, which is spoilt rotten.

On average the mounts get about 25 seconds spray and that's their lot.

---------- Post added at 02:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:16 PM ----------

Originally Posted by DesignerofBeauty

Well, about two months ago I discovered that this cattleya orchid of mine had some spider-like mold and root rot. I actually believe that you responded to my thread, jkofferdahl. I was overwatering my orchid. As a result of this incident, I decided to stick to a weekly watering schedule. Lo and behold, my orchid is now showing signs of dehydration. I don't know how to please this plant! I beginning to realize more and more each day that growing orchids does have a learning curve.

I read that soaking may be more beneficial.

Here's my poor dehydrated plant:
Is my cattleya hybrid otchod dehydrated? - Album on Imgur

So, perhaps it's best for me to soak it for now, until it regains some health? I'll continue to water as usual then, using my faucet sprayer.

The fact is that orchids have different needs in summer and winter. Ideally they would have a winter pot and a summer pot. Since that isn't feasible, you need to ensure they have the minimum medium they need to get by in the summer with more frequent watering, and then in winter water much less, and pay careful attention to ensuring they dry between waterings.

[DesignerofBeauty]

Okay, what's the best way for measuring how dry the media is? I'm always afraid I'll disturb the roots when I stick my finger into the pot.

[Orchid Whisperer]

Soaking can be beneficial to a badly dehydrated plant.

I would not want to continue to soak all the time as a watering method all the time for a Cattleya alliance plant. If you forget and soak too long, you can waterlog and damage the roots. It might work if you are the kind of person that would NEVER forget and let your plant soak too long.

I am growing a few plants by vase culture, and they are mostly watered by soaking.

I have read recently (can't recall where) that orchid roots take up most of the water they need in 25 minutes or less. Probably this varies a lot depending on the orchid you are watering.

If you soak, do so following the "no sharing bath water" rule, as you state. The soaking container should be cleaned in between plants; soak plant, drain. rinse the container, spray container with straight bleach (or trisodium phosphate, NEVER both of these at the same time); clean rinse. IMO kind of a pain, but it can be done. Sharing the container without cleaning in between is asking for trouble, again IMO.

[bil]

Originally Posted by DesignerofBeauty

Okay, what's the best way for measuring how dry the media is? I'm always afraid I'll disturb the roots when I stick my finger into the pot.

Use a skewer for fine bark and below, with an eye to the type of orchid. Coarse bark can't be overwatered, as long as it is sieved, pure and is't broken down.

I melt a hole in the pot near the bottom, and stick the bamboo skewer in horizontally.

---------- Post added at 06:10 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:07 PM ----------

Originally Posted by Orchid Whisperer

Soaking can be beneficial to a badly dehydrated plant.

I would not want to continue to soak all the time as a watering method all the time for a Cattleya alliance plant. If you forget and soak too long, you can waterlog and damage the roots. It might work if you are the kind of person that would NEVER forget and let your plant soak too long.

I am growing a few plants by vase culture, and they are mostly watered by soaking.

I have read recently (can't recall where) that orchid roots take up most of the water they need in 25 minutes or less. Probably this varies a lot depending on the orchid you are watering.

If you soak, do so following the "no sharing bath water" rule, as you state. The soaking container should be cleaned in between plants; soak plant, drain. rinse the container, spray container with straight bleach (or trisodium phosphate, NEVER both of these at the same time); clean rinse. IMO kind of a pain, but it can be done. Sharing the container without cleaning in between is asking for trouble, again IMO.

Well, a dehydrated plant is a different kettle of fiish, The discussion is about how to water healthy plants.

Vase culture works, but to me it's way too much of a pain, uses a hell of a lot of fertiliser solution per plant, and I can't be humping vases full of water around.

[jkofferdahl]

Sure, there are exceptions to my "no soak" rule. I even mentioned soaking an overly-dried orchid in my post. I have no doubt I recommended soaking an overly-dry plant. That said, I stand by my point completely that soaking is not only unnecessary but also of possible harm. Roots don't need 20-25 minutes of soaking to absorb water, it's more like they can tolerate soaking for up to that long before they start to bloat. A long soak prior to potting is useful because it softens the roots, but that softening means they're also quite tender from bloat.

All you need to do is run water through the pot. Like Bil I spray my mounts, and it sounds like we use similar sprayers. With potted orchids I run water through the pot for a few seconds, flushing it. That's all the roots need unless you have humidity so low that the orchids would dehydrate no matter what you do. After watering, just wait until the media is fully dry and re-water. Each and every plant may need a somewhat different watering schedule, so you can't decide to water every Saturday or water every three days. Our sense of pattern doesn't work with orchids.

[Orchid Whisperer]

During a prolonged rain in wild orchid habitat, an orchid will easily be subjected to 25 minutes of rain, or more, soaking in water until no more water can be taken in.

If a plant is soaked 25 minutes (or even an hour) it will not bloat. It just does not do much good soaking in a container any longer than that. And significantly longer in a container (i.e., forgetting it for a couple days) could be deadly.

DesignerofBeauty posted earlier today about a severely dehydrated plant, which is why I mentioned it.