Off a cliff? Opinions?
 

I recently watched a video done by a long-time semi-hydro grower. He stated that he had learned that after years in semi-hydro, the orchids "go off a cliff" and start declining. He had issues with his collection and was converting his entire collection to organic. I'm left wondering if this is true, or if the growers "go off a cliff" in what is required to maintain orchids in semi-hydro. I'd be less that honest if I didn't say that flushing day is an onerous task, but not having to deal with decaying media, more frequent waterings, more frequent repots, etc. is a more than fair trade off in my opinion. Due to the nature of semi-hydro set ups, I cannot find a logical explanation for them all deciding they do not like it any more. Opinions?

I've yet to have any of mine dive off the cliff simply by being in semi-hydro. After five years, ten years, fifteen years.

If something goes downhill after a prolonged time, there's likely something else that changed to produce that effect. Does this individual say "how" they believe semi-hydro is what caused the decline after years of growing well that way?

Sometimes a small change in the growing environment can have a large impact on our plants. If the change is small enough to go unnoticed by us, I can see why the s/h growing method gets the blame.

In 2020, I had 8 Calathea houseplants (notoriously picky/difficult) that were flourishing. Something changed in 2021 and they started declining. I now only have two. One is fine, the other is questionable. I haven’t been able to identify the cause, but something changed and it would be easy to blame X, Y, or Z and claim certainty. It could have been something I did/didn’t do, it could have been any number of things. There’s no way to know for sure.

Be cautious of people that make scientific claims with certainty without providing evidence (real evidence, not opinions or simple observations) to back up their reasoning. If those people are also trying to sell you something, run away as fast as you can.

Most sympodial plants should outgrow the container before 5 years. That time course is consistent with salt buildup on the LECA, which can be delayed by using purer water, acidic rather than alkaline water or flushing more frequently.

Or, "Correlation does not equal causation" I snap my fingers to keep elephants away, and I have certainly not seen any elephants in my neighborhood, :biggrin: Oh, you think that there is maybe another reason??:scratchhead:

Would you mind posting a link to the video? I'm working on my first year using s/h. I agree with the other comments, especially about flushing. (I water twice a week, one fert, one flush)

If you are looking for YouTube videos on semi hydro, I recommend Ninja Orchids, Nicole Deanna and The Orchid Room. All three grow in semi hydro but in different environments.

Thanks. I'll check them out. But I was curious about the video you referenced in the OP.

Michael’s Orchids

I watched a couple of the videos suggested and was happy to see the Orchid Ninja gives props to Ray for his posted information, as well as a link to his site.