Fertilizing and staking

[Watertiger]

Now folks, I saw that there's a controversy on how to fertilize: some hold that liquid fertilizer is best applied after watering (allegedly to avoid burning aerial roots), some hold that liquid fertilizer should be applied right away (argument being that once aerial roots are saturated with water, liquid fertilizer intake is hampered plus there's no danger of root burn if fertilizer is properly diluted). I fertilize weekly-weakly with regular 20-20-20 at a dosage of 1 tsp/4 liter (soon switching to MSU orchid fertilizer 19-4-23, granular well water formula as we have a surface well supply, at 3/4 tsp/1 gallon for spring/summer and 1/2 tsp/1 gallon for fall/winter). What's your take take on this?
Also, so far, I insert the stake for flower support at the wall of the clear plastic pot because it allows me to readily circumvent roots thus avoiding damaging them. But the result is a curved stalk (not that it matters much though). How do you go about inserting the stake in the middle of the pot while assuring that no roots get damaged?

[AnonYMouse]

This is what I do:

I can't be bothered so I dilute fertilizer into my water. If the label says to feed once a month, I dilute that by how many times a month I water. I flush when I don't have fertilizer mixed or during winter when growth slows.

That's just me. Others will be by with other suggestions.

I stake only if I have to. I jiggle the stake until it hit the pot bottom.

[Ray]

Right off the top, "weakly, weekly" has no meaning, and neither 3/4- nor 1/2 teaspoon per gallon of those formulas is "weak".

If you're going to feed weekly, I strongly suggest no more than 1/3 teaspoon/gallon of either of those formulas.

[Watertiger]

Thanks for your input, AnonYMouse! I'll try the stake-wiggling approach next time I need to put them.

---------- Post added at 09:58 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:45 AM ----------

Hi Ray,
indeed, I made a mistake: the 20-20-20 manufacture's instruction is 1 tsp/4 L which, for orchids, is supposed to be 1/4-max.1/2/4L. As for the MSU fertilizer, upon asking, the vendor told me that the ratio I mention in my post refers to the already properly diluted one. Now you suggest I should use 1/3 tsp/4L/gallon and from all I read on the topic so far, you may have a point. However, it seems to me that fertilizer instructions are rather obscure and that it can be tricky to hit the right dosage. Is there really no common consensus on this issue? Even info on the AOS website regarding phal's weekly-weakly routine recommends applying fertilizer at 1/4 strength of the manufacture's instructions. Go figure...

[fishmom]

Watertiger, I suggest you read the information on calculating fertilizer rates on Ray's website. It will help you decide on a mixture depending on the strength of the fertilizer you are using and the nitrogen needs of the plants.
Treat Your Plants Right! - First Rays LLC

[rbarata]

I don't really care about ppm's and such...I make solution according the label and dilute it by feeling. I don't dilute for my Stan and Cymbs.
As I always forget I fertilize always, regardless of the season.

[Optimist]

Originally Posted by rbarata

I don't really care about ppm's and such...I make solution according the label and dilute it by feeling. I don't dilute for my Stan and Cymbs.
As I always forget I fertilize always, regardless of the season.

I've tried this tactic, and it hasn't exactly worked out wonderfully for me. Seeing that I felt a bit guilty, I went to Rays and got some stuff. Inocucor and the K-lite fertilizer. I bought the K-lite because I was out of ferts and--why not? It has a very good rating as far as word of mouth on orchid sites: both of these products do. -- So, not an ad!

Major question: I have a TDS meter. Is this the same as a PPM meter, and how do I use it??? Seriously.

Now, this is not to be used as advertising, but I will be switching to this routine, and consider it an experiment:
Inocucor once per month at 3 tablespoons per 3 gallons of RO or rainwater. (week 1)
2nd week-- plain RO or rainwater.
3rd week-- K-lite 1-tsp per 3 gallons RO or rainwater.
4th week -- plain RO or rainwater.

So basically once a month Inocucor and once a month K-Lite. (no more cal-mag because the K-lite has the cal-mag in it).

Most of my orchids are doing great anyway, and a few are a little ill. Some, I watered a bit too much this past winter. The phrags are suffering a bit from getting tap water. Conchiferum has a spike though!

The plants:
My mecophilia and Cattleyas are great except for 2 of them. The Phals are great except one,
The green leafed paphiopedilums are doing awesome but not blooming, the mottled leaf paphs are not too great except venustium, Miscellaneous, Pychopsis, and encycvola are awesome. Getting trichocentrum this week, can't wait.
And The Dendrobiums Hate Me. I have given up on growing bulbophilums until I get some sort of steam room. My arid environment will not allow certain species without a greenhouse.

My goal is to try to get better at Dendrobiums, mottled leaf paphs, and Phrags. I really hope the inocucor works. I could use a bit more hardiness in these plants.

[No-Pro-mwa]

Optimist the inocucor is suppose to be 3 tbsp to a gallon of water. I think Ray said it could be a bit less but that made it easier. I use all three of these and I do think it has helped my orchids.

[Ray]

Originally Posted by Optimist

Major question: I have a TDS meter. Is this the same as a PPM meter, and how do I use it??? Seriously.

TDS means "total dissolved solids", and the units, for our purposes, are PPM, parts per million.

TDS meters are really just cheap electrical conductivity meters with a built-in conversion to PPM, but that conversion factor 1) varies from one manufacturer to another, and 2) really ought to be changed based upon what ions you're specifically measuring in solution. Because of the inaccuracy that brings to the measurement, you're best to use it as a "check to see if something has changed" device, rather than as a way to determine the actual ppm's.

In other words, if you are shooting for about 50 ppm N (1/3 tsp/gal for K-Lite), mix it up and measure the TDS - it'll probably be 200 ppm or more - and write that number down, as that'll be your target going forward.

I think 50 ppm N applied once a month is insufficient, "No-Pro" is right about the Inocucor concentration, and you're making this unnecessarily complex on yourself.

For weekly watering, I would recommend 50 ppm N at every watering, flooding heavily each time (so it flushes, waters and aerates all at once), and add the Inocucor one time per month.

[Leafmite]

To avoid burning the roots of the most delicate of my orchids, I have been using Osmocote for all my orchids, including for the Pleurothallidinae. I have a type that has Calcium and a type that has the micronutrients so I add some of both. The orchids haven't complained so far. I add extra eggshells to my Cattleyas and Angraecums to help with their Calcium needs.