Watering/Feeding Technique

[Clawhammer]

Hello.

I have about 300 orchids and am trying to figure out the best way to water to minimize effort and maximize efficacy.

When I had a few orchids I would soak the whole pot, can't do that now, too time consuming and could spread disease. When I got more orchids I began to take them to the sink. Too many now to do this.

I have them all setup in plumbed drainage trays so I can water in place with the hose I have run to the room. Watering with the hose is quick and easy, if I could do this everytime my I could take on a second career with the time saved. However, this does not feed the plants.

I have been watering first with a hose to get everything wet and then coming back an hour or so later after the bark is hydrated and I fertilize quickly with a pump sprayer. The point here is to only feed, the hydration is already taken care of, which saves fertilizer and a lot of time (pump sprayer is slow compared to the hose).

Will this work? Are my plants getting fertilized sufficiently (I use 1/4 every watering)? Are there alternatives like a hose attachment that mixes ferts at quarter strength?

Thanks in advance

[DirtyCoconuts]

this is very similar to how i care for all of my ROUGH orchids....the ones that done care what kind of water they get (vandas Catts mostly) and they are fine..I still end up spraying 100s of plants but only a couple times a week while watering them daily still.

for my patio and lath house orchids...i just use the pump sprayer for hydration and fert ( i use about a 1/2 tsp of K-Lite in a three gallon sprayer) and so those guys get sprayed daily while the 'hosers' get fed 4x a week …

[Keysguy]

Hammer..........I know orchid nuts can get very creative so I would love to see pics of your set-up because I can't picture in my head a) 300 orchids in the house and then b) watering them with a hose!

I grow in a shadehouse year round and have overhead sprinklers and misters on timers. You obviously can't do that but works great for me. They get all that extra natural rain in the summer here but I can give them a little more dry time during the winter when we get little rain.

What I would highly recommend for fertilizing is to use a Chapin sprayer. Make sure it has siphon hose that goes to bottom of the bottle. Attaches right to your hose. I pre-mix my fertilizers in a gallon jug then just fill the Chapin bottle as needed as I go along. It has an adjustable mixing valve that will mix fert. with water as you spray so you need to do some math to get your pre mix right. I love mine and BTW, I'm not sure I've bought into the "must pre-water" camp. I've personally tried both ways and and see zero difference.

[WaterWitchin]

I've tried a couple of hose end dial sprayers. Like the kind you spray a lawn with and you calibrate how much gets mixed into the water being sprayed. The worked "okay" but not great. Maybe if you had one where the spray could be adjusted along with pressure, it would be better. I tried it when the plants were outdoors last summer, using the dial end sprayers I already owned, but it seemed too messy for an indoor application.

On that same topic (I think)... I recently read an article, can't remember where, that discussed watering for hydrating vs fertilizing, similar to what you're talking about. Watering for fertilization first, then going back through later with plain water for hydration. The individual's theory was a plant's roots will better uptake the fertilizer when roots are drier, and if the roots were already hydrated they wouldn't be uptaking the fertilizer well and it would just be running off. Then watering to hydrate the moisture in the medium in a different go-round. I don't know if that's accurate or not. Maybe someone else does? I remember it as being a guy who was in charge of a botanical garden's orchids, like Missouri Botanical gardens, but it wasn't there. It was certainly someone knowledgeable enough that I paid attention.

I thought it a great idea, as I grow SH without just about everything. I've done it a few times now, because it sure saves money on fertilizer not using fertilized water to flush the plant. Sometimes I fertilize a day or two before, sometimes a couple or three days after, and only filling up until it starts letting water out of the reservoir holes when using fertilized water. I have a couple in bark that I haven't transferred yet, and I'm doing them the same way.

Any thoughts about that theory?

[DirtyCoconuts]

i have not seen any anecdotal difference with the before or after or during...the only thing i know for sure is that MORE water (in a healthy way) makes for more growing

[Clawhammer]

Originally Posted by Keysguy

Hammer..........I know orchid nuts can get very creative so I would love to see pics of your set-up because I can't picture in my head a) 300 orchids in the house and then b) watering them with a hose!

I grow in a shadehouse year round and have overhead sprinklers and misters on timers. You obviously can't do that but works great for me. They get all that extra natural rain in the summer here but I can give them a little more dry time during the winter when we get little rain.

What I would highly recommend for fertilizing is to use a Chapin sprayer. Make sure it has siphon hose that goes to bottom of the bottle. Attaches right to your hose. I pre-mix my fertilizers in a gallon jug then just fill the Chapin bottle as needed as I go along. It has an adjustable mixing valve that will mix fert. with water as you spray so you need to do some math to get your pre mix right. I love mine and BTW, I'm not sure I've bought into the "must pre-water" camp. I've personally tried both ways and and see zero difference.

Thanks for the recommendation, this one right?
https://www.amazon.com/Chapin-Intern...s%2C249&sr=8-5

I'm weighing it against one of these:
Robot Check

I did have to get creative to fit so many orchids in a 10 x 12 bedroom. These pics are a little older, more plants now, but gives you an idea of the setup. I admit to being insane, but this room has been a lifesaver during the lockdown!

[Clawhammer]

Originally Posted by WaterWitchin

I've tried a couple of hose end dial sprayers. Like the kind you spray a lawn with and you calibrate how much gets mixed into the water being sprayed. The worked "okay" but not great. Maybe if you had one where the spray could be adjusted along with pressure, it would be better. I tried it when the plants were outdoors last summer, using the dial end sprayers I already owned, but it seemed too messy for an indoor application.

On that same topic (I think)... I recently read an article, can't remember where, that discussed watering for hydrating vs fertilizing, similar to what you're talking about. Watering for hydration first, then going back through with a pump sprayer containing the diluted fertilizer. The individual said when fertilizing that way, always do the fertilizing first. Come back later and do the plain old water hydration of the plant. The theory was a plant's roots will better uptake the fertilizer when roots are drier, and if the roots were already hydrated they wouldn't be uptaking the fertilizer well and it would just be running off. Then watering more later establishes the moisture in the medium. I don't know if that's accurate or not. Maybe someone else does? I remember it as being a guy who was in charge of a botanical garden's orchids, like Missouri Botanical gardens, but it wasn't there. It was certainly someone knowledgeable enough that I paid attention.

I thought it a great idea, as I grow SH without just about everything. I've done it a few times now, because it sure saves money on fertilizer not using fertilized water to flush the plant. Sometimes I fertilize a day or two before, sometimes a day or two after, and only filling up until it starts letting water out of the reservoir holes. I have a couple in bark that I haven't transferred yet, and I'm doing them the same way.

Any thoughts about that theory?

Very very interesting. My theory was that the fertilizer water would remain in the pot for the whole drying period if I fertilized second, but now that I read your advice and think about how orchid roots absorb water so quickly (turning white to green), ferts first is starting to make more sense.

Thanks for the advice on the mixers. I am still weighing that versus a bougie battery powered sprayer.

[WaterWitchin]

And I was editing and re-editing my post so it hopefully made more sense. Whoops! Y'all are way too quick draw for me today!

---------- Post added at 09:58 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:54 AM ----------

For me, it makes great sense, because of the way SH watering works. I use less than half the fertilizer I would normally use.

KeysGuy, I've had 200+ orchids in the living space of my house and watered with a hose. Ya gotta think outside the box. As a matter of fact, I'm supposed to be creating a post for an individual here about "Ways to Move Water." Perhaps I should be doing that instead of lollygagging a few steps behind y'all.

And yes! I saw that Chapin hose sprayer! Is it really wonderful enough to go the extra expense of it, as opposed to my old Ortho sprayer? I've looked at it before....

---------- Post added at 10:07 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:58 AM ----------

And oh great... now I want a battery operated sprayer. I need to quit reading this stuff... it makes me spend money.

[Keysguy]

Wow, that's nice!!!!!!!
Had a grower friend who had his condo basement filled. It was like walking into another world.

this one right?

yup---that be the one.

[Clawhammer]

Originally Posted by Keysguy

Wow, that's nice!!!!!!!
Had a grower friend who had his condo basement filled. It was like walking into another world.



yup---that be the one.

I'll admit it is helpful at avoiding seasonal affective disorder during the dreary PNW winters I keep it 83 degree @ 75% humidity and it is bright.