Hello from Watertown, NY! Looking for advice!

[Sofya]

Hello everybody!

My name is Sofya, I'm an amateur but passionate orchid lover, striving to learn more about growing these beautiful flowers indoors.
Before moving to Upstate New York, I had good success in raising a few orchid plants at my home in California (before I left they all got adopted by my friends). But it seemed like the weather and humidity was just perfect for then in California. I would just spray the roots and stems with distilled water a few times, and they were thriving. Here, in Watertown, I'm facing a great challenge - it's very very cold, so we have to use heating all the time; and, as a result the humidity is very low.
I wonder if anyone can advise me the best way to create perfect conditions for my orchids - humidifier? Humidity tray? Sprayer bottle every once in a while? I'll gladly take any tips you might have!
I'm currently trying to upkeep a Phalaenopsis orchid. As soon as I get a hang of it - can't wait to expand the orchid family

Thank you very much, looking forward to meeting everyone!

~Sofya

[WhiteRabbit]

I don't use humidifiers myself, but I believe that they (the cool mist ones) are the best way to increase the humidity for your plants.

What type of symptoms does your plant have? Maybe watering more thoroughly might help?

[Sofya]

Thank you for response! I just examined the plant (fresh out of the store) and noticed that a few roots looked dead. Also, the roots and soil were in a tight plastic container with only holes at the bottom (I didn't think that was enough for aerial plant and tried to cut a lot of holes all over the plastic walls). Do I need to put it in a different more aerated ceramic pot? Also (ugh!) there were some tiny microscopic bugs at te bottom of container).

[ula]

Hi,
good luck with expanding your collection!
For your humidity issues you can try several different things like humidity trays, humidifiers, growing medium that retains moisture longer...you'll probably find out what works best in your environment as you go. If you're worried about your Phal- repot it in fresh growing medium (I find that most supermarket orchids are in dire need of repotting) in a pot that povides aeration for the roots.