Reflections from an Amateur or

[JDwiggy]

A new story entry has been added:

Reflections from an Amateur or “How I finally got my Orchids to Bloom!”

am in my early 50

[Depau]

Thanks so much for this piece of advice. It is exactly the sort of information for which I have been searching. Now it is back to the books and orchid supply houses.
Depau

[Ross]

I have been preaching this for nearly a year: you get what you pay for. Good light meters (calibrateable) are the only ones worth spending money on. The only definitive way to describe how much light is being provided is to measure it. Glad you made that discovery and glad that discovery led to better success. Exactly as I would have predicted I also trust you have found great success with t5 florescents. By the way, it is possible to "fry" your orchids under these lights if the foot-candles or lumens are not controlled - whoah! We're back to the light meter

[nhman]

Originally Posted by Ross

I have been preaching this for nearly a year: you get what you pay for. Good light meters (calibrateable) are the only ones worth spending money on. The only definitive way to describe how much light is being provided is to measure it. Glad you made that discovery and glad that discovery led to better success. Exactly as I would have predicted I also trust you have found great success with t5 florescents. By the way, it is possible to "fry" your orchids under these lights if the foot-candles or lumens are not controlled - whoah! We're back to the light meter

Agree! It IS really easy to fry orchids under T5's. I will attest to that- along with a few of my sunburnt plants too. Even with using a light meter. I have found that even readings over 1500 footcandles may be too bright for a full day under the lights and have had good success in backing that down some. So I'd add that just because one has a good tool in a high quality light meter, doesn't mean one can't still screw up using it! One can definitely produce alot of good light with T5's - using it without frying some of our poor trusting orchids takes observation, good tools and experience.

[JDwiggy]

Thanks for the comments! I'm new at this forum business, this is my first article. I saw the contest and decided to share my thoughts. Regarding frying my orchids, that's why I set up 4 different light levels. My paphs are doing very well in the low section, a 50/50 mix of 3000K and 6400K bulbs, 800-900 ft-candles at the plants. On the high light end I've had to move some out that were getting sunburn, but on the other hand my brassavola and some of my Catts just drink it up and ask for more. I know I have not arrived yet, I have lots of experimenting to do, but after 6 years of very little success, to be where I'm at now is very gratifying.

[Amanvari]

Where can I get a good light meter and what should I be looking for? I would need to buy on the internet, preferably considering my location.

[JDwiggy]

Originally Posted by Amanvari

Where can I get a good light meter and what should I be looking for? I would need to buy on the internet, preferably considering my location.

eBay is where I got mine, I use one just like this one in this link.

Digital Light Meter 50,000 LUX LCD Photo New w/Battery - eBay (item 250338795989 end time Dec-09-08 18:04:21 PST)

It's not fancy, and it's not expensive, but it seems to work very well. It comes calibrated, the down side is you can't change the calibration yourself. It comes calibrated in the blooming spectrum (near 3000K), but it seems to read 6000K levels fairly accurately. I was a bit skeptical considering the low price, but I took it to two orchid greenhouses where they graciously let me test light levels in different parts of their greenhouses. The readings seemed reasonable and it has worked fine for me in setting up my lights. My orchids seem to agree, so if you have a limited budget I think it's a good choice. There are some good deals on eBay on more expensive meters if you keep your eyes open.

[AboutOrchids]

Thanks for the great info, especially about the importance of light. I've started supplementing with artificial light in the winter months for my reluctant bloomers, and it definitely helps with some.

[s1214215]

Hi James

What is the burgundy coloured orchid in your article? Is it a Phaius or Phaiocalanthe?

Brett

[quiltingwacko]

Is that a Habenaria? Carol