Aquascaper turned Orchid Keeper has Questions

[Shadeflower]

neo's get grown a little different to the others, you should look up neofinetia moss mounds to get a good idea.

I personally would not risk using tap water long term. I know my neo's prefer rain water, the mini's are generally more sensitive to water quality.

don't get hung up on the exact temperature. As long as it doesn't drop too low or go too high you should be fine. Just let the temp drop to whatever it drops to in the room at night as long as its not under 65F for warm growers.

Use a heat mat and see what it goes up to. As long as it doesn't go above 80 that will be fine.

a note on the light. A 18" is exactly as powerful as a 36" just that the 36" will light up twice the area or 36" long instead of just 18" so if the 18" isn't long enough then use the 36" or use the other one you mentioned.

None of them will fry the plants excessively but you do need to check what hight to hang the light initially. You can judge based on the leaf color if they are getting too much. Once they get too much some generally develop a red leaf tinge which indicated you are at the upper limit.
There is no rush, just start off to see what they can handle. If you provide too much straight away you can cause light damage which won't be reversible.

[estación seca]

I strongly recommend beginning orchid growers not use the moss mound technique for Neos, unless they will grow the plant outdoors in a climate similar to what Neos get in habitat. The pages of this forum are littered with dead and dying Neos wounded by people trying to learn the moss mound technique.

[GravesSpeaks]

Hi Seca, I am in South Carolina, USA. Zone 8a.

[Shadeflower]

the moss mound is more a principle of things to consider. They need more air flow than a potted phal.
They like high humidity around their roots all the time.

And as you point out they are considered a little harder which is why some people have developed their own way of potting them with a hollow core to prevent waterlogging in the center, a big mound to maximise air exposure and moss which retains and provides humidity.

No method is risk free. But sticking to those aspects when growing a neo is beneficial.

[estación seca]

You probably have enough winter light to flower Cattleyas and Neofinetias on the windowsill.

[GravesSpeaks]

I am feeling much more chill now. I am going to take things slow and keep logs of my progress. I don’t consider myself very good at mounting any type of plant at all - even types I am USED to working with - so I am going to stick with everything bare root, with a few cases of moss additions. I should be able to quickly identify plants that are struggling, especially since I work in my plant room.

By the way, orchids show stress in mostly similar ways, right? Time to go down a research hole!

---------- Post added at 07:30 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:18 PM ----------

I am going to go for a temp range of 65-77 degrees (and not stress if I can’t achieve that at first). RH range to stay between 55-80%. Watering schedules will be individually tailored according to type and tracked on my excel sheet. I will make a goal of adding ferts to the schedule in a couple weeks. They should be fine until then.
I have my weakest Current USA led bar 18” above them for 12 hrs per day right now (which is driving me CRAZY but I will control my urge to change to a stronger light bar for a week or so. This light wouldn’t be sufficient for low light aquatic plants…patience, Alyssa)

---------- Post added at 07:31 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:30 PM ----------

Ok, that’s not true it would be fine for LOW LIGHT plants but not for anything else!

[estación seca]

I just noticed the bare root comment. I strongly recommend you not do that, but leave them in their pots for now. They don't grow bare root in habitat; they grow attached to trees or rocks, generally with a substantial amount of leaf litter or moss surrounding the roots. The equivalent in horticulture is called "mounting." It is very difficult to grow mounted plants inside a house because the roots dry out too rapidly. Your terrarium isn't up and running yet. Even in terrariums, most people find Oncidiums don't do well mounted. Their small-diameter roots should not dry out completely.

We water when the plants need it, not by the calendar. Almost nobody waters different plants in a terrarium on differing schedules. That's too difficult to arrange and takes too much time to administer. Most terrarium-suitable orchids growing in a terrarium stay moist all the time. Many of them are best grow in a terrarium because they need to stay moist. If the roots are well aerated it's fine if they're watered again before they dry out. That's why I was concerned about you growing a Tolumnia in a wet terrarium. They're outliers among epiphytic orchids, most of which are fine with continually moist roots during the warm growing season.

Aquatic plants get light that passes through water, which attenuates it tremendously. Air doesn't attenuate light nearly as much. Terrestrial plants don't need the brilliant lights needed for aquatic plants.

[GravesSpeaks]

Coool thanks Seca! I just asked that light question in the “growing under lights” forum, but I that pretty much answers it! And don’t worry, my babes won’t be leaving their pots for months yet. I have to feel like I can keep them Heckin alive first!