Fertilizer
 

Hey All,

I just noticed that Ray no longer has fertilizer on his site. Can someone point me of where I can order some good fertilizer online or buy locally in Los Angeles? I had been using the MSU mix and I think my plan has been doing pretty well on it.

Any tips appreciated. Thank you.

You can get it here.

FEED ME! MSU Orchid Fertilizer - RO/Rain/Tap Water Version

Kelley's Korner Orchid Supplies (kkorchid.com) in New Hampshire, or Chula Orchids (chulaorchids.com) in Oregon are excellent vendors. I've done business with both for years.

I strongly advise folks to stay away from RepotMe.com, due to their labeling practices, pricing, and exorbitant shipping costs.

Good to know.

Thanks. Are you familiar with Jim's Orchid Supplies? I believe they're based out of Florida. They have stores on Amazon and eBay, would making buying from them very simple and they offer MSU fertilizer.

in my opinion, Jim's prices at Amazon are way out of line, as are RepotMe's.

Ray, if you don't mind explaining to a novice, what do you mean by "labeling practices"? This site does not sell plants, and that's what I think of when I hear labels.

I have purchased supplies from this vendor, and I'm reluctant to invite negative comments, but since the door has already been opened.....

If it's not appropriate to post publicly, maybe you would send me a PM?

I buy Dyna Grow for orchids liquid concentration formula on eBay. They are the same price (lowest you can find) as some others and often free shipping.

I highly recommend eBay for a small number of fertilizer. Just surf through and see if there are anything you like.

I just ran out of my second bottle and will order a bunch soon.

Also, if there is Home Depot nearby, you can pick up Miracle Gro orchid fertilizer, which is only around $5.
It gives me more for the bucks when compared to the liquid concentrate product, but I just don't like shaking the bottle to dissolve all the fertilizer granules.

I hand water at home rather than making a big barrel of solution, so this really is a big hassle for me.
So, most of the time, I pay more and buy liquid formula.

By law (and, in my opinion, as a matter of honesty), fertilizer labels must give the concentration of the ingredients contained.

In the case of MSU RO formula, the powder is 13-5-15, meaning 13% nitrogen by weight, 5% Phosphorus as P2O5, and 15% potassium as K2O.

My understanding is that the folks at RepotMe dissolve one pound of that powder in water to make up a gallon of solution for their liquids, but they still label it as being a 13-5-15 formula. In reality, what your getting from them is only roughly 10% of that, making it a 1.3-0.5-1.5 formula.

They are convenient because you can log in through Amazon and pay with that account. I agree, their shipping is too high. I limit what I buy from them to dry fertilizer and potting mix. I also use Dyna Gro cal mag from Amazon. I will be switching to KK as I wanted to try K-Lite. In my area, there is not a good, consistent seller of supplies.

Thanks for explaining that. I'm using the MSU powder, which I happened to buy from them. Of course, all of us would be dissolving it in a certain amount of water before feeding it; but that said, if a vendor is going to dilute it for you first, it would seem appropriate that they advertise the diluted strengths.

I've purchased from a few different vendors over the past few years, and I find it's always wise to shop around and do your homework. I have not yet found just one that fits all my needs.

It's stories like these that make me sad I downsized First Rays...

I use Roberts Flower Supply (orchidmix.com)

Sunset Valley Orchids in Vista, CA carries it. They also go to essentially all the LA/Orange county shows, so you should be able to pick some up without paying for shipping, or driving very far.Or you could to down there for their Open House http://fascinationoforchids.com/2017/svo.gif

Question for Ray. I use the MSU granular formula for well water, from Repot Me. Do they mislabel that as well as the liquid form? I have to say since I switched from Dyna Gro to the MSU, all my orchids have exploded with growth, and I'm having the best bloom ever. I went with the MSU formula from your advice, but I wasn't aware that it could differ from vendor to vendor....

---------- Post added at 07:48 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:40 PM ----------

Hmmm. I just compared the amount per gallon on Kellys Korner's site and Repot ME's site. Kelly's says (this is for MSU granular for well water) to use 1 tsp per gallon. Repot Me says 1/2 a tsp. ???

---------- Post added at 07:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:48 PM ----------

I also compared the micronutrients, and the one from Repot Me has higher micros than Kelly's.

---------- Post added at 08:14 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:56 PM ----------

I stand corrected. The MSU micronutrients from Kelly's is higher in zinc and copper, but a bit lower in iron, Boron, and Molybdenum. Not sure if this is good or bad. I'm in the dark about this stuff, but I totally trust Ray's opinion.

Thank you for the vote of confidence. Trust me on this one: You are overthinking it.

Fertilizer is probably the least important aspect of orchid culture, and the percentages of minors in a formula doesn't even show up on the radar. Pick a complete fertilizer formula, make sure your plants are getting nitrogen, calcium, and magnesium - they need very little of those - and all of the rest of the minerals will be adequate.

Feed a very small amount of fertilizer consistently (I prefer every watering, so I won't forget), and forget about it, focusing on everything else.

For a plant to gain a pound of mass - a year or two for large plants, a lifetime for small, Andean species - the plant must absorb and process about 25 gallons of water, and only about 5 grams of fertilizer nutrients.

I have been misting mine with fertilizer. but I am wondering would it be better to dip them instead so it gets under the moss? this is how mine are mounted.

Thanks Ray. It's good to know that I'm over thinking something rather than under thinking something:roll:

What I do with small mounts is, I spray them all over, and when I get to the end, I go back and spray them for a second time.

Orchids, in general, are not particularly good about picking up most nutrients by the foliar route. You certainly can spray them, as bil suggested. Just make sure the roots are wetted when you do.

If that is true, someone should tell them.
That is just not right.

Oh, it's true, alright. I know for a fact that the PA Dept. Of Agriculture has contacted them about it, to no apparent avail.

What's the point if they don't get any actual punishment for this wrong doing?

I don't buy fertilizer, especially liquid fertilizer unless the shipping is free, so I have never bought their fertilizer but never will. lol

I do buy their potting mix and while some say it is expensive, at least for people who would like to use ready to use mix that ship in two days, it is convenient.

I just feel strange about them after learning about their ill practice of faking the numbers on the fertilizer dilution by 10 folds!!!

I don't know if it's deliberate, ignorant, or lazy, but in any case, it's illegal.