How should I water my Phalaenopsis?

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Welcome to the Orchid Board!

Florida summers should be great for Phals. A lot of people near Miami can grow them epiphytically on trees outdoors. They don't much like going below 60 F / 15.5C, but with your warmer winter days, they seem to tolerate it most of the time.

They like bright to medium shade, and warm temperatures. Outdoors for the summer on a shady patio is good for them.

They can be grown very well in moss, but watering is different from watering in other media. You need to keep your orchids in moss separate from your orchids in other media, because they have different watering frequencies.

You don't soak orchids in moss. You just wet the top, then let the water evenly moisten all the moss. This way it stays lightly moist, and retains a lot of air. If you completely soak the moss, the air spaces are obliterated, and the roots may suffocate. Some people let all the moss get crispy dry between waterings, and others don't let it get quite that dry.

I would think during the Florida rainy season you would not be able to grow in moss outside with all the rain, because it would stay too wet. But I don't live there.

You can always take a Phal out of the container to examine the roots. Even repotting in bloom rarely affects the flowers.

There is an excellent thread here on Phal growing in the Beginner forum. From the left yellow menu click on Forums, then Beginners. Near the top look for the sticky thread The Phal abuse ends here.