Terrarium failure needs help - Orchid Board

fluffylily · #1 05-31-2009, 10:18 AM

I have an exo terra (60 x 45 x 60 cm) that I have set up with prime agra on the bottom, screen, and some bark and moss on top of the screen. I have an Exo terra canopy with two fluorescent lights and two PC fans in the back running 24/7. I also have a misting system set for 8 seconds three times a day almost everyday. The top of the terrarium only has a mesh lid, so to prevent the moisture from leaving, I put some saran wrap over the part of the top that is still open.

I used to have a warm growing Masdevallia strobelii, Angraecum didieri, Sophronitis cernua, Christensonia vietnamenica, Bulbophyllum putidum, Haraella odorata , Nanodes schlechterianum, and an Aeranthes grandiflora. A lot of these were taken out or died from being too dry. The terrarium has a humidity of around 60-80% and temperature between 29 and 21C. The bottom is usually filled with at least 3 inches of water, which is all in the level on the prime agra. Now, as the water is evarporating, there is a level of crust or buildup on the bottom of the tank which is very ugly. I feel like maybe the tank humidity isn't high enough, but not sure. I even had some air plants, tillandsias, and some even died in there. I am a bit lost and feel like giving up with this thing!
Do you all also have to water your plants individually as well? I had to keep watering my plants in there even with the mister and the humidity and even some plants died when I got lazy and forgot to water. Can someone provide some advice? I think there might be some pics of it when it was initially started in my gallery or in my older posts.

heatherk · #2 06-02-2009, 11:07 AM

Sorry to hear about loss of your orchids. Started my terrarium about 2 months ago and have had great success. Mine is an old 60 gallon aquarium. I have 2 fans running 24/7 with 4 T5 bulbs on for 16 hours a day. the tanks averages 60 to 80% RH and 65-85F degrees. The glass lid on the tank completely seals the tank. I open them at night or if the humidity and temperature get too high. Along with misting every other day and humidity trays at the bottom I still water and fertilize weekly weakly. I have tolumnia, cats, oncids, dendrobium, paphs and phals. Also tillsandias seem to be doing ok but it hard to tell with these plants. I keep notes on watering and fertilizing and I think this has helped to keep them thriving. Keep in mind though I am new at this and will have to see what the future brings.

Ross · #3 06-02-2009, 02:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fluffylily

I have an exo terra (60 x 45 x 60 cm) that I have set up with prime agra on the bottom, screen, and some bark and moss on top of the screen. I have an Exo terra canopy with two fluorescent lights and two PC fans in the back running 24/7. I also have a misting system set for 8 seconds three times a day almost everyday. The top of the terrarium only has a mesh lid, so to prevent the moisture from leaving, I put some saran wrap over the part of the top that is still open.

I used to have a warm growing Masdevallia strobelii, Angraecum didieri, Sophronitis cernua, Christensonia vietnamenica, Bulbophyllum putidum, Haraella odorata , Nanodes schlechterianum, and an Aeranthes grandiflora. A lot of these were taken out or died from being too dry. The terrarium has a humidity of around 60-80% and temperature between 29 and 21C. The bottom is usually filled with at least 3 inches of water, which is all in the level on the prime agra. Now, as the water is evarporating, there is a level of crust or buildup on the bottom of the tank which is very ugly. I feel like maybe the tank humidity isn't high enough, but not sure. I even had some air plants, tillandsias, and some even died in there. I am a bit lost and feel like giving up with this thing!
Do you all also have to water your plants individually as well? I had to keep watering my plants in there even with the mister and the humidity and even some plants died when I got lazy and forgot to water. Can someone provide some advice? I think there might be some pics of it when it was initially started in my gallery or in my older posts.

If you have sufficient humidity for the species you are growing, you don't need water in the bottom of the tank. The prime agra isn't really necessary and may be contributing to the buildup as it is a staging area for algae and bacteria. In the bottom of my tank are several upside-down plastic pots supporting an egg-crate material used in ceiling florescent lighting installations. I take the whole tank apart twice a year and clean the whole thing out. I get algae and moss buildup that I treat with bleach solution. I also bleach the egg-crate material to kill the algae. I think most of what you describe is probably more aesthetic than a real problem.

Yes I water my hanging plants as well as mist them. The mister sprays pure water (R.O. water) for 5 seconds every 4 hours during the "lights on" period (right now that is approx 14 hours.) The spraying helps maintain 90+% humidity. The misting also washes all nutrients from the roots and mounts, so I fertilize with every daily watering.

I'll bet your tank is way too dry and you'll need to increase the number of mistings to every 3 or 4 hours using an interval timer. More than 5 seconds of misting, however is not necessary as the misting can't replace actual watering of the plants.

Here is my setup:

I have a complete description of the setup process here: Setting up A Custom Orchid Tank - Orchid Board

Royal · #4 06-02-2009, 04:10 PM

My tank is tiny - only 10 gallons. I mist by hand every day (usually) and I water once or twice a week as well.

I'm curious about your humidity readings. If your humidity is 60 - 80%, things shouldn't be just dying off. Do you have a hygrometer in the tank? How about a fan?

fluffylily · #5 06-08-2009, 08:31 AM

Thanks for the comments everyone. I have the Exoterra hygrometer and thermometer, and it says that the min and max is about 60-80ish, but I saw that the plants were drying out and the moss was always looking dry on my mounts.

I originally wanted a natural looking setup with backgrounds and mounted orchids on bark etc...but then it wasn't easy for me to water the orchids that were mounted inside the tank. How do people go about watering their orchids that are actually mounted in the tanks?

I was hoping to get away without having to constantly water the orchids in this tank as well as the ones not inside the tank as it take a lot of time! I guess this won't work...and I have to water them as well now. At this point, I took almost all of them out since they were mostly dying. I will probably have to start from scratch with this thing.

Royal · #6 06-08-2009, 09:57 AM

What about a fan? This really is a crucial piece of equipment.

I water once a week (usually Saturdays). After really soaking everything, the RH stays up around 80-90 for a couple of days. As it starts to dip down below 70 I start misting daily (Wed). I only really need to mist the mounted ones, but it bumps up the RH for the few more days until watering time.

What orchids are dying with 60% humidity?