Fertilizing with Aliflor?

[Junebug]

I recently purchased some Aliflor. Have never used the stuff. Can you use ordinary orchid fertilizers or must you use a nutrient solution when Aliflor is the potting medium...and must you always keep a shallow water source beneath the plant? I'm repotting an Onc. Thanks.

[Ray]

What folks don't realize is that no matter what the medium used (with the exception of osmunda), your nutrient solution must provide all of the minerals the plants need. Orchid growing media provide little, if any nutrition to the plants. If they do start to provide some (and they are likely not what the plants need anyway) it's because the stuff is decomposing, and will soon suffocate the roots.

You only need to have the reservoir if you intend to grow in semi-hydroponics. LECA makes a pretty good medium for "traditional" culture if you can keep up with the watering.

[Junebug]

Originally Posted by Ray

What folks don't realize is that no matter what the medium used (with the exception of osmunda), your nutrient solution must provide all of the minerals the plants need. Orchid growing media provide little, if any nutrition to the plants. If they do start to provide some (and they are likely not what the plants need anyway) it's because the stuff is decomposing, and will soon suffocate the roots.

You only need to have the reservoir if you intend to grow in semi-hydroponics. LECA makes a pretty good medium for "traditional" culture if you can keep up with the watering.

So....is it OK to use diluted fertilizer (the kind that comes in tiny crystals and dilutes with water) with the Aliflor or is it better to use a liquid nutrient supplement? Do you soak the medium in water every so often to leach out mineral deposits or is that a problem with Aliflor? Thanks Again.

[Ray]

The stuff you dilute and the stuff you buy already diluted are essentially the same thing.... If anything, if you buy liquids, you're paying for a lot of water!

The need to periodically "flush" is too dependent upon your overall conditions and feeding and watering regimen to generalize.

For the plants I grow in LECA in non-S/H culture, I water heavily with a dilute (125 ppm N) solution whenever I water (2 or 3 times a week at a minimum), and in my very humid greenhouse, I have no buildup issues.