dgmra. winter wonderland 'white fairy' and does distilled water need fertilizer

[Zoren]

Good afternoon Members, I haven't been addressing the board since 2019. I stopped buying and caring for many orchids for a number of years, I decided to have a try at it again. I couldn't fight the heat in my Florida room (the room faces SW temperatures reaching over 100 degrees Fahrenheit), as you can see I live in South Florida. I only have a few orchids (10) right now, 3 Phalaenopsis; 4 Psychopsis (one plant with 6 spikes and many buds); 2 plants I can't remember the names of (when they flower I will be able to put names to them) and I just bought a Degarmoara Winter Wonderland 'White Fairy'. I'm interested in knowing how to care for this plant. It has a number of pseudobulbs old and new, one bulb has a spike with 2 blooms and 2 buds. My plants are facing NE indirect sun in the morning, finally, the temperature has been coming down and they are starting to do better. This summer has been brutal, it seems my Psychopsis plants went into a dormant state because of the heat day and night. Not to get off the subject, would someone who has experience with this type of orchid give me some pointers? I also would like to know if other members use distilled water for their orchids. I put 1/4 of a teaspoon of fertilizer and 1/2 a teaspoon of Epsom salt into a gallon of distilled water for watering between once to twice a week to ten days (depending on the weather, it's still very hot). I would like some feedback from members who have the information that I need. I miss the challenges of growing these remarkable plants, but I can only do with no more than 20 plants. Waiting for a reply, Zoren

[Ray]

I’ll let others address the plant question…

When deciding on fertilizer application, you need to consider the formula, the frequency of application, and the water chemistry.

With distilled, reverse osmosis, rainwater or some other pure supply, you’re starting with a “blank canvas”, so must supply all nutrients.

Of the additives, calcium is far more important than is magnesium. Mg can be moved from old tissue to new, so a periodic addition will go a long way. Once Ca is absorbed, on the other hand, it is pretty much locked in place, so it must be supplied on a regular basis.

It would certainly be simpler to just buy a fertilizer that contains both - MSU RO, K-Lite, or Jacks Cal-Mag.

A really simple way to manage fertilizer application is to divide 8 by the %N. The result is teaspoons per gallon for weekly application, with room for rounding. For example, for K-Lite @ 12.9%N, 8/12.9=0.62, so 1/2 tsp/gal is great. If you feed every two weeks, double that.

[JScott]

Originally Posted by Zoren

Good afternoon Members, I haven't been addressing the board since 2019. I stopped buying and caring for many orchids for a number of years, I decided to have a try at it again. I couldn't fight the heat in my Florida room (the room faces SW temperatures reaching over 100 degrees Fahrenheit), as you can see I live in South Florida. ... I just bought a Degarmoara Winter Wonderland 'White Fairy'. I'm interested in knowing how to care for this plant. It has a number of pseudobulbs old and new, one bulb has a spike with 2 blooms and 2 buds. My plants are facing NE indirect sun in the morning, finally, the temperature has been coming down and they are starting to do better.

I have also struggled with Oncidium intergenerics here in my Texas heat. Degarmoara can be especially tricky because only one of the parent plants (the Brassia) will always tolerate heat. Odontoglossum won't. The hybrid can be made with Miltonia or Miltoniopsis, and it is still considered Degarmoara. If the plant is made with Miltoniopsis, that adds another cool grower, making it even more challenging. Fortunately for you, the lineage of your plant contains Miltonia (spectabilis and clowesii), which are warm growers.

In your case, there is not much you can do about the heat itself (just like I can't do much about it in Texas), but there are strategies you can use to minimize the impact. Give it bright shade. It doesn't need any direct sun. You can use the pebble tray method to try to increase ambient humidity, but I'm not convinced of the value of that, but I don't think it would hurt.

Make sure it never dries out. Oncidiums like to stay always a little moist anyway, but this becomes even more important in high heat. Keep it away from any sources of heat if possible. I understand that may be difficult or even impossible, but do it if you can.

None of these things will completely balance out the effects of excessive heat, but if you keep it in shade, away from heat if possible, and grow it in an appropriate medium (say, small bark rather than large will hold more moisture), and never let it dry out, you stand a good chance of keeping this guy alive and getting him to bloom in the future.

I hoped I helped! If I made any errors, somebody will come along and correct them.

[Roberta]

Air movement is another factor that can help compensate for heat (like a fan). It'll dry out faster so you'll need to make sure to keep it well watered (because as JScott mentioned) these hate to dry out. But with air movement you get evaporative cooling. In fact, sphagnum (or small bark) in a terracotta pot will help in that regard, since the pont will also hold some moisture that can evaporate.

[estación seca]

You can look up species ancestors of registered hybrids at orchidroots.com, which will also tell you the currently accepted nothogenus name. A nothogenus is a genus hybridized from two or more natural genera. Degarmoara as originally described have ancestors from genera Brassia, Miltonia and Odontoglossum. But Odontoglossum have almost all been sunk into Oncidium. The correct nothogenus would now be Aliceara, which orchidroots shows for this plant.

[JScott]

Originally Posted by estación seca

You can look up species ancestors of registered hybrids at orchidroots.com, which will also tell you the currently accepted nothogenus name. A nothogenus is a genus hybridized from two or more natural genera. Degarmoara as originally described have ancestors from genera Brassia, Miltonia and Odontoglossum. But Odontoglossum have almost all been sunk into Oncidium. The correct nothogenus would now be Aliceara, which orchidroots shows for this plant.

ES is of course correct. You should listen to him; he really knows what he is doing and gives great advice. He's been a great help to me through the years. I like the old names because they contain information that the new names often don't. Still, I should use the correct nomenclature, but old habits and all.

ES, are there actually any Odontoglossums left, or have they all been merged with Oncidium?

[ArronOB]

I grow several plants of Winter Wonderland White Fairy. In our conditions it is a prolific grower, very hard to kill, no pests or diseases, and flowers regularly. I have a few Oncidium alliance hybrids that are equally easy to grow but it is the standout in terms of flowering. This tells me that our conditions are probably the optimum for this plant.

You can see our conditions here http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/dwo/20...4.202306.shtml and think about how they vary from your own conditions. Note that although there might be some similarity in terms of extremes, the actual quantum of heat is Florida is very much higher then we experience.

In terms of best potting mix, sunlight, air movement etc I’ve never noticed any differences. I grow mostly in pots, in bark, outdoor shadehouse year-round. I have Wwwf’s in various positions in the shadehouse and all seem to do about the same. I rarely fertilize because I rarely have the time.

Here’s an unsolicited opinion. If you live in Florida then you live in orchid-growing heaven. Why would you struggle with a plant that is clearly happier in a cooler climate when there are so many wonderful species that you could grow? I’d get rid of it and replace it with plants that suit your conditions.

[Zoren]

I'd like to thank all the members who replied to my questions. I will follow the growing and caring suggestions from all of you. As for 'ArronOB's' suggestions, I will look for better plants for hot/warm weather. As for the Aliceara (thank you 'Estacion seca' for the correct nothagenus). I just bought this plant 'ArronOB', and I will try hard to keep her alive "I love a challenge".
Ray, it's been a few years since last we spoke. I have bought some of your excellent products in the past. Your explanations about how to make use of water and the chemistry behind it are always fascinating to me. I try to understand and do my best to accomplish as close as possible to what you suggest. I've just watered my plants, I mixed 64 ounces of tap water (175 TDS-PPM ((today)) with 64 ounces of distilled water (I get my distilled water from AC runoff), and I got the PH to 5.87 with no fertilizer. I try to water them every 7 to 10 days with 1/4 teaspoon of fertilizer (based on how fast they start drying out). I had to water twice this week because of the heat, so I didn't use fertilizer. Do you feel that the mixing of my tap water and distilled water makes a good base for watering? I will add fertilizer to this water for regular watering. What type of fertilizer would you recommend?

Again, I would like to thank the members that replied to my inquiries. Have a wonderful Veterans Day, Zoren.

[JScott]

One more thing, I would like to encourage you to use Ray's Kelpmax (now called Kelpak) I'm sure Ray will better explain it to you, if he wishes. You can get this at his First Rays online shop.

It is basically a growth stimulator. Most of those products do not work, But Kelpak is like magic. I've been using it for years, and have seen a great improvement in the growth of both stems and roots, and a general boost in vigor.

I'm not just saying this because Ray and I have communicated in a friendly way on this forum and I like him. Kelpak really is a fantastic product and I would recommend it to everybody.

[Zoren]

Good afternoon members, based on the advice from ArronOB, I've decided to bring the Aliceara indoors into my living room facing SW, (light sun and the temperature will range from 78F-74F median temperature about 76F). The question is whether I should put the pot on a tray with pebbles to retain moisture.

Thank you JScott for the advice about Kelpak, I will purchase it. I'm also considering buying the K-Lite, is it a good fertilizer? I have always had trouble with which fertilizer is best for orchids. Once I have an opinion from other members I will buy them together.

As for which warm or hot orchid varieties will grow best in South Florida I'm open to suggestions. I really like sequential growing orchids and orchids that have a scent, most of my plants are Psychopsis. Have a great day, waiting for comments Zoren signing off .