keeping phals outside
 

Hello:waving

I want to put my phals outside, but I am wondering how people don't get crown rot when it rains. I have mine in pots, not mounted, so the water wouldn't drain out. Some of mine naturally drain the water out of the crown, but in other, I need to tip it out. What do you do? I don't like keeping mine inside because of the airconditioning :blushing:, and I want the temperature change from day to night

Thanks!!

I grow my phals outside in a covered area. I don't let the rain get to them because of rot.

If you don't have a covered area, you can grow them on their sides kind of facing down, as they would grow in nature.

This way the rain would not sit in the crown of the plant.

hmm makes sense, but say they arent covered, but are at an angle, they won't get crown rot if they just have rain wetting them for a few hours, will they?

I was hesitant about replying because I no longer grow orchids outside. We had a hail storm year before last that wiped out my rather large collection of specimen-sized Phals. But while I was growing them outside (several years) I never worried about water in the crown. If it rained, they got wet and stayed that way till the sun finally shined. They were not under cover (thus the hail damage) and it caused no problems. I really don't have any specific words of wisdom, but I wouldn't worry. Certainly if you get 40 days and 40 nights of rain you might have a crown rot problem. But that might be the least of your problems :biggrin:

haha thanx:)
I had mine out last summer, but that was when I was not paying too much attention to my orchids... and they were fine. now that I am really into orchids, I am paranoid about crown rot! I guess it won't happen outside, otherwise there would have never been any phals to find in the wild ;)

Phals in the wild grow with their crowns pointing downward - man is the one that turned them upside ... I have seen phals mounted or potted so that they take their natural form .. I believe Sue has some photos of some? :scratchhead: but I'm not positive :hmm

:hello I grow all my phals outside and have never gotten crown rot. It rains a lot here but it is hot. That's different than Canada. As they get bigger they want to lean over and I let them grow that way. Maybe that does help prevent crown rot (:scratchhead: I never thought about it).

i have grown them outside with no problem. don,t forget the wind useually dries them out after a trainshower.
if the forecast is for continues rain i move them under my gazebo so they don,t get soaked but still benefit from the occasional water spray. a nice rain seems to pirk them right up and washes out a lot of crap out of the medium, just don,t put them rifgt on the ground, but use a little table otherwise the snails will get them. they love all sorts of orchids.
i bring out a bench out of my little greenhouse. its 6 ft long and about 24 inches off the ground. they live there happily untill fall. after they start spiking i bring them back in their warm hme under glass.
hope i was of some help

I leave mine outside in the summer as well, but they are protected. We frequently have hail storms so I don't want to risk it! And it never rains in the summer, it's a downpour!

Beware of sun burn , I burned several after moving them out of the house to have insulation blown in they were in the shade until the sun shifted for a short time , burned a few leaves they looked bad until damaged leaves were lost ( like swiss Cheese ) .
I have some in the greenhouse in pots edge of pots clipped to a rack on an angle seems to work ..
Because of the weather here they stay in the green house . Gin