Keeping it simple, nuriko, first pick one of the fertilizers and just use it until gone. Put the other way. Use it either at every watering or every other watering, and at least one-fourth strength depending on what it is. Ray can always give advice on dividing it out so you can figure out what "weak" is. I'd give fertilizing a break for awhile, a month or so, then commence once you have good root growth, although that one is sure already looking more promising.

Use Kelpmax twice a month for a couple of months, and you should have good root recovery by then. Then start using it once a month. I'd throw the probiotic in with the Kelpmax and do both at once, just because it's easier to remember. The more you make it routine, the easier it is to remember.

Thanks Waterwitchin! Yeah I think root development is more important for me at this point! I am waiting for the kelpmax to come in and am excited to use it!!

So far most of the plants look ok. There are a couple that started to develope black spotted mold again. I have put sticks into the mix to figure out how fast the inside dries out. And a couple of plants developed black mold spots on my sticks. So I kind of left those alone for a couple of weeks and haven't watered them. I really wonder what's causing them ...

Hi Estacion! Yes I got a heating pad, and now it is around 70 degrees, I hope thats good for them!

On that note, some orchids seem to need to heath more than others. And I would like to know which needs what. But I can't figure out even what specific species or groupings my orchids belong to. Here's the info on one of my orchids, looking at these info, which category should I pay attention to when searching for info?

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Here's the image of the flower and title. I usually take screen shots of the website when I purchase them online.

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I have realized more and more that the needs of each orchid is different and I would like to try to accommodate them, but how do I find their needs?

Thank you all, happy holidays!!!

Hi Ray! Thanks for your input! I am waiting for the kelpmax to get here. I plan on using it twice a month at.least for a few months while the plants stabilize. Do you suggest using it at the strength that is labeled on the box or at a different strength for twice a month. Also, is it OK to use it with fertilizer/ prebiotic, or should I not mix? If I can mix, should I put all the solution (kelpmax & probiotic, or kelpmax & fertilizer) together, orrr do one round of kelpmax and another round of fertilizer?

I would appreciate any details and specifics. Thank you so much! Happy holidays!!

Phalaenopsis generally need similar care - warmth, and "moist air" rather than "wet" around their roots. Some, such as Phal. bellina and Phal violacea, need even more warmth, but otherwise the same care. Night temperature should not be much below 68 deg F/20 deg C, and daytime temperature should be somewhat warmer. Your heat mat should help a lot. I would be very concerned with them not drying out in two weeks... if they are warm enough and in a medium that is open enough to give the roots adequate air, they should dry out in a few days, even a week is a long time for them to stay wet. Perhaps with the extra warmth they'll dry out faster, but if not you will probably want to re-think the medium. Since Phals are always growing roots, they can be potted at any time.

There's a lot more variability for Cattleyas - knowing the name makes it possible to look up the species in its ancestry, because some are more tolerant of cold than others. However if you're growing in the house, temperature is probably less of an issue. But air around the roots is even more important, they want to go nearly dry before being watered again. Catts have distinct rooting periods, so unless it's an emergency they should only be repotted when they are starting to produce new roots. The timing of that is different for different Catts, so you just have to observe - when you see new roots starting to emerge, it's time.

Thank you Roberta!! Is Bellina and violacea the species name or genus or hybrid name or cultivar? I don't know how to find out the grouping my plants belong to. I think I have the pod and pollen parent of some of my cattleyas, here is one. Which part do I use to find out its care info?
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Thank you!! Happy New Year!

Phal bellina and Phal. violacea are species. When you have a "named" (registered) hybrid you can look up its "pedigree" - all the species that went into it, and that can cast some light on care. Phal hybrids that have either of these two species as significant ancestors will have a star shape. The inflorescences may produce flowers sequentially over moths or years - and so stay green. The more "generic" Phals have more of a round shape, the inflorescence is much longer and most of the flowers will be produced simultaneously.

The Cattleya in question is Potinara Ching Sun Bright Star 'Red Lantern' to put the pieces of the name into the format that one would find on the tag. A Potinara is a fairly complex human-made genus. While you can get down into the weeds for the details of its parentage, that is probably unnecessary... It is in the Cattleya tribe, so it needs bright light, and also needs to go nearly dry before watering (drier than a Phalaenopsis) The information is a little bit inconsistent on that form, noting that it can grow in a range of environments but says "Warm/Intermediate" - these typically can grow much cooler than a Phal. but certainly don't need to.