Plant Care

Lady Slipper's originate from the jungles of the Far East and Indonesia. They are semi-terrestrial which means they grow in humus on the forest floor.

LIGHT:
In the wild they grow in shady places under shrubs and trees. Give them as much light as they will handle with out inhibiting growth. Seedlings and sick plants cannot handle the higher light conditions as mature healthy paphs. Do not overheat the paph leaves. If the leaf feels warm to the touch then reduce the light and increase air movement. Grow in the east, west or in a shaded south window. They also grow extremely well under four flourescent lights 6-12" above the leaves. In the greenhouse, 75% shade must be provided. Give them about 1,000 to 1,500 foot-candles. .Learn More

Cattleyas are referred to as the Queen of the orchids. It is no wonder. All you need to do is look at a nicely grown plant with good flowers and you will know why.

LIGHT:
Cattleyas prosper in bright light, 50-55% shading in a greenhouse. Some Mini catts can go as low as 1000 foot candles. Indoors, grow in the east, west or in a south window with a sheer curtain. .Learn More

Phragmipediums grow from Mexico through central South America.

Light
Grow them bright like Cattleya's. In a green house, use 30 to 50% shade. The bessea and schlimii hybrids like medium to low light like Paphiopedilum's. Learn More

General Orchid Care

Growing under lights

When I first started growing orchids I grew them in the house near windows. Later when my collection became too large I moved them under lights. Then eventually to a greenhouse. My grow table is in an unfurnished basement. I framed off an area and covered it with plastic. Inside I built a table with sides and lined it with plastic. The table is sloped to one corner with a drain. I used a bathtub drain and connected it to a garden hose and ran the hose to the floor drain. I use a fixture that can hold four 40-watt fluorescent tubes that are 48” in length. Inside the fixture I have two warm bulbs and two cool. It is recommended that the bulbs be replaced yearly. Use a timer so the orchids are on a schedule so they will flower and grow well. Run the lights for 16 hrs in the summer, 14 hrs in the spring and fall, and 12 hrs in the winter for two months to promote flowering. Keep the lights 8” above paphiopedilums and phalaenopsis, 6” above miltonias, 3” above mini-cattleyas and oncidium types. My electric heater is on a timer so it kicks on during the day with the lights so I have the fluctuation of day and night temperature. I run a fan 24 hrs a day. There is a hole in the plastic to keep air circulating so it does not become stagnant.

How often to water

I generally water once or twice a week. Watering depends on the temperature, lighting, air movement, humidity, potting mix and the type of orchid you are growing. Check the potting mix before watering. You can do this by sticking your finger into the mix or use a sharp pencil. If the pencil comes out dry then it is time to water. Another way is to check the pot by weight. After you water check to see if it has stopped dripping then pick up the pot. Remember how heavy it feels. Then check it periodically and when it feels lighter then it may be time to water it again. Water when the mix has a little moisture in the mix but is not bone dry. If it is too dry then it may be hard to hydrate the mix. Use water temperature that feels good to your touch. It should be the same temperature as the surrounding air. It does not need to be exact but gives you the idea. Cold or hot water will shock the plants. I have found that many people do not know this and they use cold water. Do not use water from a water softener. The water contains salt and will kill the plants. When watering make sure to flush the potting mix so the water comes out the bottom of the pot. This will prevent salt built up.

Under watering

Pseudobulbs become shriveled and furrows appear, leaves will curl, older leaves will turn yellow and drop. Basically the orchid wilts. Oncidium types will have accordion leaves. You need to simply give the orchid more water.

Over watering

Over watering is when the potting mix does not dry out between watering. Roots require air to survive. Water replaces air in the potting mix and if the roots don’t receive air then they will die. When the roots are dead then the plant cannot uptake water and the symptoms are the same as under watering. Because of this people will give the orchid more water and then it may develop rot and the plant dies. If you have over watered then you should repot the orchid into a new mix and remove all the dead roots. You may need to reduce the pot size if you have significant root loss. If the plant has no roots left then you can plant it in some sphagnum moss and encourage it to grow new roots. Be careful not to rot it.

Fertilizer

If the potting mix is dry then water the plants before you fertilize. This will prevent the fertilizer from burning the roots. Use ¼ to ½ teaspoon per gallon. There is a lot of debate on what type to use. I use 30-10-10 for bark mixes and 20-20-20 for coconut husk chunks. I also use osmocote 14-14-14. It is a slow release fertilizer. I like it because I do not need to worry about over fertilizing. I use it in the springtime and I apply it at the following rates, 4” pot - 1/2 tsp, 5” pot – 1 tsp, 6” pot – 1 ½ tsp. Do not fertilize during the cold or hot months of the year, December thru February and June thru August. You will know when to fertilize if the new growths are smaller and the orchid appears yellow. If you are over fertilizing then salts will build up in the potting mix and on the pot rim. The leaf tips will also turn black and die back. Flush the orchid frequently to help prevent this problem. Fertilizing during the hot months of the year will cause high uptakes of fertilizer and will cause the tips of the leaves to burn.

Repotting

I use Bark mix containing charcoal and perlite or Coconut Husk Chunk (CHC) mix with charcoal and perlite. I like the medium grade mixes for cattleyas and many orchids in four inch pots and larger. Fine mix is usually for seedlings and water loving plants. Repot every other year or more often when needed. Most potting mixes degrade in one to two years. I like Coconut Husk Chunks because it does not degrade as fast as bark mixes. The best time to repot is when the new roots are beginning to emerge or the orchid has out grown its pot. With Coconut Husk Chunks I usually need to repot because the orchid has out grown its pot and not because the mix is degraded. If you stick your finger into a mix the mix should bounce back. If it does not then it may be decomposed and then it will hold to much water and will cause root rot. If there is a lot of white crust on the inside of the pot or on the mix then you may need to repot. This is a sign of salt build up and is not good for your orchid. Before you repot your orchid you may want to soak your potting mix overnight. Mixes are dry when you buy them and it is hard to wet them the first time. Coconut Husk Chunks usually needs to be soaked for 24 hrs and drained. Repeat this process three times to makes sure that there is not any salt residue in the mix. Buy your Coconut Husk Chunks for a good vendor. If it comes from Sir Lanka then yours should be fine. Once your mix is ready then take the orchid out of the pot. Clean the roots of all the potting mix and remove the dead roots. Most of the dead roots are brown in color and the outer coating slips off. Live roots are usually hard and white. At this time remove the dead leaves. Now is a good time to clean the pot and remove all the salt residue or use a new pot. Orchids like to be root bound and many do fine with roots hanging out of the pot. There are two different types of orchids. Monopodial and Sympodial. Monopodial orchids grow upwards from a central growing point and grow tall such as phalaenopsis. Monopodial orchids should be placed in the center of the pot. Sympodial orchids grow horizontally and have a rhizome such as paphiopedilums. Some have pseudobulbs such as cattleyas that hold water. They grow to a certain height but can grow very wide. With sympodial orchids put the old back bulb to the side of the pot so that there is enough room for the orchid to grow to the side. If you want to divide the orchid then leave the divisions into three to fives bulbs per clump. If you divide them any further then you could set the orchid back. Do not over pot either type of orchid. You should only use a pot large enough for two years of growth. If you have some roots that are too large then it is fine to cut them back to fit them into the pot. Stake the orchid with either a rhizome clip or an upright stake in the center of the pot. Don’t forget to put the label back in the pot.

Lighting

If your orchids do not receive enough light then they will be dark green and each new growth may be spindly and smaller than the last. The orchid may not flower or if it does will have a low flower count. If the orchids are receiving too much light then they will have yellow patches or red tint. You can feel the leaves and if they are hot then they may be receiving too much light.

Temperature

If your orchid is subject too low temperatures or freezing then the leaves will turn dark and mushy. If the orchid is subject to low temps then leaf spotting and rot can occur. High temps can cause yellowing and blacking of the leaf tip. Leaf drop may also occur. High night temps may cause the orchid to become weak.

Diseases

Black Rot is when part of the plant turns black, watery and mushy. It is often found in cattleyas. If it is not stopped before it reaches the rhizome then it will kill the plant. Remove the infected area and use Subdue against Fungus such as Black rot (phythium and phytophthora).

Root Rot occurs in decaying potting mixes. Infected roots die and the orchid has symptoms of over watering. Repot the orchid into new mix and remove all the dead roots. You may need to reduce the pot size if you have significant root loss. Treat with a fungicide such as Physan and Phyton 27.

Bacterial Brown Spot occurs in phalaenopsis. I see it the moist cool wet conditions. It looks like a soft brown sunken water blister. Cut out the infected area and treat with Physan and Phyton 27.

Brown Rot is seen in paphiopedilums. Look for a brown spot that spreads quickly. Typically it causes soft brown dead areas at the base of the leaves. It can spread quickly to the rest of the plant. Cut off the infected area or leaf and treat with Physan and Phyton 27 every couple of weeks. To stop rot, have good air movement so your paphs will dry out quickly after watering. Keep you’re potting mix dryer and lower the humidity. Increase the night temperature. Increase the pH by adding dolomite lime on top of the potting mix. Keep insects under control because they can spread disease.

Fungi / Leaf Spotting is not deadly and many people live with it. You can treat it with a fungicide and increase air movement and ventilation. I have seen it on the oncidium alliance.

Viruses are a disease that cannot be cured. If you end up with a virused orchid then the best thing to do is throw it away. There are two main types. The cymbidium mosaic virus and the tobacco mosaic virus. Symptoms are sunken spots, lack of vigor, color breaks in the flowers and lines of dead tissue in the leaves, chlorotic and black necrotic spots, streaks and rings. It is hard to tell if an orchid has a virus. Test only look for the main virus types. Use sterile tools between each orchid so you do not transmit any diseases. Soak tools and plastic pots in a 10% bleach solution or use disposable razor blades between each use. You can also use a propane torch for several seconds or cook tools and ceramic pots in the oven at 300 F for an hour. The bleach solution works well for cleaning plastic pots. Virus can transmit by dirty pots, dirty hands and old potting mix. Use disposable rubber gloves and repot on newspaper so you can get rid of the gloves and paper between orchids.

Scale is a looks like a small mound attached to the orchid. They are white to brown in color. It can easily spread over an entire plant. Cattleyas and orchids with leaf sheaths are hard to exterminate scale because they hide under the sheath. Scale secretes an armor that is made of a hard waxy covering. Insecticides may have a hard time penetrating the armor. You can use q-tips or cotton balls with alcohol to wipe the scale off the orchids. If you have many orchids then you can use a chemical like insecticidal soap, orthene or malathion.

Mealybugs are often found under the leaves or in other hard to spot locations. They are enclosed in a white cottony wax secretion. They can spread quickly. Alcohol can also be used or chemicals such as orthene or malathion.

Mites make the leaves have a dusty silver sunken appearance under the leaves and look dry. You can check for mites by rubbing a white cloth over the suspected area. It will leave redish or brown steaks on the cloth. Use insecticidal soap.

Bud Blast happens when the new flower buds die back with out opening. Some causes are when it is to hot or cold, low humidity, insects, improper watering and fluctuation in temperature is also a cause.