Moss in higher humidity in winter?
Hey everyone! it's been a bit.
I've been learning as i go and i think i have my mini cattleya care down, except for the temperature.
I grow mine in a moss, bark and perlite mix and it seems to go well, especially since they're on a heatmat now. It doesn't warm the whole pot sadly, but it does make things dry up quicker now in winter, which is lovely! they're doing great.
However, it isn't warm enough for them to bloom, so i wanted to invest in a milsbo or anything like that ikea family; if i can get the temperature up in there with a few heat mats, then they'd be alright in winter and would bloom. i could also insulate the cabinet if needed.
My only worry with his is....humidity. the plants would directly be on the heat mat or on a saucer so i can just water them directly, and the temperature would be around 24 degrees c ideally, but with all the plants in there i'd be worried about watering those catts. I've heard plenty of people say they can handle 1 week of moisture and even a bit more, but i'd like to have it dry up, in around a week. (have had a catt that was a seedling last year stay moist for two weeks not too long ago, but that's a small plant so who knows)
Normally i let the moss dry up till it's crunchy dry, which makes watering a bit difficult as it slides down and only wets a bit of it...but i've also heard some people let their catts approach near dryness and then water again...
all in all, i'd like to do this because it's much cheaper than heating a whole room in winter, but i don't know how to deal with the humidity. Could i make a few holes in the glass with a glass cutter to still retain some heat but get rid of the higher humidity? i'd like to avoid full bark, because come summer i won't need this setup anymore; i can just open the cabinet and the plants can be warm that way, but i've also had other issues with bark.
any advice is greatly appreciated.
ps the cattleyas on my heat matt currently dry up in around 2 or 3 days with a light to medium-ish watering
Last edited by OrchidNut555; 01-10-2024 at 08:36 AM..
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