orchids and rain
 

its officially spring here in South Africa and the temps are warming up nicely and any day now the rains should start.all my cymbidiums are flowering so i'd rather keep them out of the rain but would my non flowering dends and phals appreciate being out in the rain when it does come,i usually rush out all the other house plants during the rain as a treat.

I think so long as water doesn't sit in the crowns and they have good drainage they would love some rain.

As silken provided good caution, I would add another caution: when it rains and your orchids get a good soaking, do be sure to bring them to a sheltered location where the leaves can dry and any moisture in the plants' crown are eliminated. Keep them in a warm space overnight. I made a mistake and left several Phalenopsis outside after a good rain and their leaves got a bad case of cold water related pock marks. Here is an example of what I mean:

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14...6b262783d3.jpg

Matt, I didn't know about that threat, sorry to see that.

I've had some of my Phals outside all summer and they've gotten quite a bit of rain, even at times when I wasn't around to prevent water from getting in the crown. I'm still nervous about it, just rained tonight, but I've turned some of them on their sides when it rains so it doesn't just sit there. They've survived more than I thought their fair share of rain in the crowns - not that I suggest you take your chances - but I definitely recommend giving them the chance to love the rain!!

I've got Oncids, Zygos, Phals, Paphs, & Catts outside all summer. Zygolum in bud, Oncid in bloom, Miltonia in bloom, mini Catt just peaking out a bud, 4 Paphs in spike/bud/bloom, & 2 Phals in spike; lots of new growth in everyone. SO yeah, keep us posted on how it goes for you. We're heading into fall now in the Midwest US.

:D

My nodosa has 11 spikes outside this summer. Best before was 2.

Pure water is great for orchids, but as Matt so unfortunately-well demonstrated, a cold rain is to be avoided - especially on sun-warmed leaves - or your plants may suffer from mesophyll collapse.

Thank you Ray for putting a name on it: "mesophyll collapse". Exactly!

Johannesburg, GautengWeather Detailed ForecastToday
08 Sep Hi : 27°
Lo : 13°
Clear Wind 6 km/hr SSEHumidity 7%Precip chance : 5%Tomorrow
09 Sep Hi : 25°
Lo : 14°
Clear Wind 17 km/hr NHumidity 15%Precip chance : 5%Wednesday
10 Sep Hi : 27°
Lo : 15°
Clear Wind 13 km/hr NNWHumidity 14%Precip chance : 5%Thursday
11 Sep Hi : 26°
Lo : 14°
Clear Wind 20 km/hr NHumidity 14%Precip chance : 5%Friday
12 Sep Hi : 26°
Lo : 18°
Partly Cloudy Wind 19 km/hr NNWHumidity 18%Precip chance : 5%Saturday
13 Sep Hi : 29°
Lo : 12°
Partly Cloudy Wind 13 km/hr WHumidity 11%Precip chance : 10%Sunday
14 Sep Hi : 29°
Lo : 14°
Partly Cloudy Wind 8 km/hr NHumidity 16%Precip chance : 5%Monday
15 Sep Hi : 29°
Lo : 13°
Partly Cloudy Wind 15 km/hr NHumidity 15%Precip chance : 10%Tuesday
16 Sep Hi : 30°
Lo : 14°
Clear Wind 11 km/hr NHumidity 16%Precip chance : 10%

this is my ten day forecast,its looking good and feeling much better,plants are outside on the verandah getting morning sun till about noon out of rains way should we get.the rain is not really cold here except the odd shower in winter,we a summer rainfall area here so im hoping they'l be ok.my dend has been inside all winter long,is it warm enough to put him outside yet?and i know about checking the pot for weight as when to water but with these rising temps does a once a week still work?

had our first summer rainstorm,it came down as usual unexpectedly,in buckets and accompanied by lots of hail.wasnt home at the time to put them out luckily only the one cymbidium which isnt doing so well was subjected to it,its away from all the others as it may have a disease and i dont have the heart to throw it away so iv placed it under a tree in the garden and hoping it can be saved.it survived -4 degrees winter tempsand this storm i hope he has one more fight in him.

had a typical summer storm last night,came out of nowhere,torrential rains,thunder,lightning and hail,thought the plants would be smashed to bits but this morning they were none the worse for wear.its warmed up again sun shining so the leaves should dry off,will keep an eye on them though

Oscar, did they enjoy the season outside! Just bought a cymbidium and a dendrobium -!never had orchids outside and very nervous. I am also in Jhb


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Don't worry about cymbs outside, as long as they don't get any frost and you keep them watered in the summer (and ot of the sun). All the rest, rain, cold, hot, wet, dry...everything goes well.

Cold water is bad, but I have religiously filled the crowns of my phals year round.
In the wild the crowns get wet, so I don't see the problem.

Down here in New Mexico (USA) the early spring is a problem and depending on the actual tempreture I take them out of bring them in. I often just rotate the time in the sun so I do not need to take so many in or out. It is nearly November here and only my cymbidiums are out because here, it is going toward winter. There are about 2 months where even the cimbidiums need to be trudged back in and out.

In the wild the plants are often hanging sideways from a tree, so the crowns would drain out most water. They aren't propped upright like we tend to try and make them do in a pot. And they likely get better moving air from breezes than in our homes. That would be the difference.

my cyms have taken quite a knock and are all on life support at the moment.we haven't had much rain lately to,the ones storm we did have had accompanying hail and my plants got damaged so now they stay inside

Yes, very dry at the moment, but mine seems fine as long as I water it daily. I think the pot might be too big...

Any luck with dendrobiums? Mine is huge, but I am too scared to put it outside!

I have 3 dens at the moment all with new growth but no flowers.but im patient I can wait

Inside or outside?

all my plants except my one epidendrum are inside.

Everything except the ones in spike are still outside. We had hail two afternoons in a row, quite unexpected. I'll be taking everything in except the Dens. November first.