Foliar feeding

[richardb]

Does anyone use foliar feeding for their orchids. If so, what is your regime?
Richard

[trdyl]

If I remember right foliar feeding does not really work for orchids.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

People do use foliar feeding. It has been shown that orchids are able to more efficiently use up nutrients through foliar feeding than through the roots themselves.

Do a search in google scholar for an article about foliar feeding. There's one floating around. It's a bit technical though and you may have to read it a few times to get it, I know I did.

I don't think I saved the article though, so I don't know what the title was called.

I believe it is also more efficiently done in the evening when the stomata (stomata are the pores that the plant uses for transpiration) are supposed to be open.

The stomata are on the underside of the leaves not the top part, and so the article will reference doing foliar feeds on the underside of the orchid's leaves.

[Ray]

My understanding parallels Ted, partially for the reasons King mentioned - orchids have limited stomata compared to most terrestrial orchids, they tend to be more highly concentrated on the bottoms of the leaves, and in many plant - notable phals - the stomata are closed in the daytime.

Add to that the waxy coating on the leaves to reduce transpiration, and it seems more likely (to me anyway), that foliar feeding is effective, as the liquid drips off the leaves into the medium!

[kavanaru]

and I agree with Ted and Ray on this... at least for most orchids, especially those with thick leave, adapted to drier air...