Watering

Steve Howard / May 7, 2020

Watering...all plants need it but out of all the causes of orchid death water is the number
one killer. So here are some bullet point tips to help understand watering.

Orchids with canes and bulbs come from areas that experience a dry season. Eg hardcane
dendrobiums, cattleyas. Watering when these should be drier and resting will cause issues.
An orchid absorbs all the water it needs in 15 minutes so soaking for hours does nothing.

Watering is dictated by many factors. Big pots dry out slower than small pots. Moss dries
slower than bark. Terracotta dries faster than plastic. You cannot over water a mounted
plant. Plants dry out faster on a warm windy day than a hot still day. If in doubt about
watering today, don’t. Reassess next day. If watering indoors in winter take the chill off it. I
don’t like a cold shower anytime let alone winter.

Rainwater is best. Always aim for just moist for phallies or any orchid without canes and
bulbs. Not too much, not too dry. Look at what your orchid is growing in. Sure, fancy pots
look good but if no drainage they will suffer. So, if I was to grow one like that, I use a normal
pot.

Place an inch of gravel in fancy pot then sit orchid pot on top. At least it drains. If your plant
develops white deposits on leaves when it dries your water is hard, ie salty. The plants roots
won’t like it and seal off. Water in mornings on rising temperature. Aim to be dry at nite.

Watering a mixed medium (potting mix) collection the same will never work as each
medium has different requirements, that’s why each genera group I grow is in same
medium. The signs of under watering and over watering are the same.

Beware of channeling of water. If your pot is dry and you water and water pours thru quickly
in a stream its going straight thru a channel so most of the plant is missing out. Water
should come out relatively even thru holes. A cold dry orchid can survive better than a cold
wet orchid. There is more but this will do for now.

Attention pic is my over wintering house where I can keep these warmer and drier over our
cool wet winters. This represents about 30 percent of the collection.