How I grow Pleurothallid Orchids.

At this present time I am growing in two orchid cases (Exo Terra) and have another two planned for the future to set up. I have made no physical adjustments to these enclosures and would recommend that beginners do not replace the top mesh with glass. The reason for not making this adjustment is that the mesh supplies the exchange of new air coming in and stale air going out of the enclosed case. Remember that your ultimate goal will be to provide high humidity however; high humidity with stale air will be the perfect breeding ground for bacterial and fungi.

My small growing case is 18" x 18" x 18" (W x D x H) and I grow all of my leaf cuttings, keikis and divisions within this case. I have added capillary matting to the base of the growing case to soak up excess water which also helps with maintaining humidity. The plants growing in pots are situated on a wire shelf to prevent plants from taking up the water from the capillary matting. Plants that are mounted are hung on the side of the glass enclosure with suction caps. Placed on the top mesh of the growing case are two small refrigeration fans running 24/7. I use refrigeration fans as they are generally more powerful, reliable and waterproof as opposed to PC fans. These two fans supply plenty of air movement inside the growing case. Placed inside the growing case is an automatic mister nozzle that is controlled by a timer to supply a fine mist of RO water over the plants and within the case, this keeps humidity between 70 – 99%. In the summer the mister comes on at 8:00am for 30 seconds and then every two hours for 30 seconds up to midday. From midday it comes on every hour for 30 seconds up to 4:00pm and one last mist for 30 seconds at 6.00pm. In the winter the misting interval times are significantly reduced.


My large growing case is 24" x 18" x 24" (W x D x H) and I grow all of my flowering size plants within this case. The case is set up in exactly the same as the small growing case apart from two extra fans on top making a total of four fans supplying plenty of air movement inside the growing case. Due to the height of this enclosure I have placed one extra fan inside the growing case situated at the bottom to ensue air circulation within this lower area. Instead of one mister nozzle there are two situated inside this growing case due to the size, which keeps humidity at 70 -99%. The automatic misters are set up to come on and off exactly the same as the small growing case mentioned above.

Both growing cases are situated in a spare cool room near a large window that provides bright but not direct sunlight. I am able to open this window of a night to allow the cool air in during the winter to lower temperature. For the summer nights I rely on the mobile air conditioning unit that is situated in the room to lower temperature. Temperature in the summer during the day is 70 – 80 Fahrenheit and drops to 50 – 60 Fahrenheit of a night. Temperature in the winter during the day is 65 – 70 Fahrenheit and drops to 40 – 50 Fahrenheit of a night. As you can see these temperatures are varied due to outside weather changes. In the winter I supply heating with the use of a small convector heater that is placed within the room.

When it comes to water quality I will only use RO water as this keeps the plants looking healthy and is fantastic for those species that are very sensitive. The RO water not only benefits my orchids but keeps the glass case looking good and prevents lime scale deposits building up on the automatic misting nozzles which would hinder their effectiveness.
I routinely spray all plants and growing cases once a week with Physan at the strength of 1ml to 1 litre. I try to supply orchid fertiliser once every two weeks or when I remember. I am really not a big fan when it comes to excessive use of fertilisers and only use 1ml to 1 litre.
I water my plants that are in pots every other day or when the pot feels light. I water all plants that are mounted once a day or every other day depending on outside weather conditions by giving them a dunk in a bucket of RO water. I will also give all plants a spray in the morning and early evening to keep the live moss moist that is growing on top of the bark or around the mounted orchids.

All orchids that are in pots are growing in a Douglas fir bark seedling mix (bark, perlite and foam). All of my orchids that are mounted are attached to live moss that is collected from my garden and washed with Physan. The collected moss is also added to the top of the plants that are growing in pots with bark mix to retain moisture and provide extra humidity around the base of the plant.

Growing in small glass enclosures is definitely not a walk in the park however, if you are prepared to put the time and effort into this amazing hobby then you will be rewarded with natural beauty. Always remember that the most experienced orchid grower will loose plants from time to time!

• Forum thread