80%+ humidity but good air movement okay?

[plantaholic]

Hey, finally solved the humidity problem in the desert. Got a couple of those plastic greenhouses - one small for for my cool growers and a bigger one for my warm ones - lights on timers - new humidifiers that have a fan that circulates air through it and water vapor - not mist - out of it. Solves the fan problem at the same time it solves the humidity. Only thing is, the humidifier is maybe too efficient. Looked up at my thermometer/humidity remote and saw that it had 85% humidity with 71 degrees temperature. So, I checked and there was no water on the leaves but everything felt moist. The leaves are moving from the humidifiers fan even up on the top shelf. Is this much humidity a problem when there's good air movement?

[RosieC]

My belief is that good air movement with high humidity is fine, but it might depend of what orchids you are growing.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Sounds like a cloud forest type setup. Growing Pleurothallids?

If so, it's fine. Great for Masdevallias. If it never gets above 75 F during the day at any given time of the year. You can grow much more exotic high elevation plants not very many people have.

Examples are:

Dracula bertheae
Drac. pholeodytes

Very high elevation Epidendrums (from around 2,800m to 3,000m).

Fernandezia spp.

Masdevallia coccinea
Masd. davisii
Masd. ignea
Masd. selenites
Masd. solomonii

Telipogon spp.

[Ross]

I'd say given good air exchange, you are fine. Just about any orchid can handle that humidity given high rates of air movement. My tank is kep above 95% most of the time, but there are three fans. If you see leaves blowing around, that will be about right. If that's not possible, then back off on the humidity some. 70% should be the highest if you are only providing light air movement. Light and strong are not definitive terms so I describe it as air strong enough to blow leaves about. That's what most of them like.

[plantaholic]

I have one masdie in the small cooler one. It doesn't get above 73. Also, in that one are a few paphs, and one brassia.

The phals, oncidiums, and their various hybrids are in the large warmer one. It gets up to around 75. I think I will add another fan to that one. It seems to be better sealed so humidity has gotten up into the 90's at times.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

I don't suggest adding another fan for the warmer glasshouse.

Phals don't like cold. They come from tropical climates that are a bit more intermediate (60 F to 95 F). This temperature range can handle quite a bit of your warmer growers.

The humidity you have for the warmer glasshouse will allow you to water your Phals just a little less. Be careful.

The cooler glasshouse is fine for your Masdevallia. Like I said, if the temperature never, ever gets above the mid 70's F during the day at any given time of the year, you can grow what some people would like to grow, but cannot because they're from ridiculously high, nosebleed elevation cloud forests with cool temperatures year round, high humidity, and good air circulation. The temperature range for these forests are 45 F to 75 F pretty much all year round.