# watering and tools



## merc (Jan 18, 2021)

I water my paphs/phrags once a week, but _it takes me literally all morning _to water my small collection of plants. There has to be a better way. I'm wondering if you guys could shed light on the watering methods and tools you use to water your plants.

Here is what I use:

*Super fine mister:* Mostly used on basket orchids and tillandsias and for paphs only on those super dry winter days.



*1L sprayer:* Great and fast BUT water splashes everywhere. 



These are what I use the most. The steady, controlled stream of liquid is perfect so I don't end up getting water in the crown, but it takes forever to water each plant thoroughly. 



It takes me a couple hours to water every week. Reducing watering to an hour max would be ideal. I am extra extra careful not to get water on the leaves or crown so I don't get weird brown leaf spots or crown rot. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!


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## eds (Jan 18, 2021)

I'm very interested in this too.

I have two of these,


https://www.amazon.co.uk/Spear-Jackson-Action-Pressure-Sprayer/dp/B00RD0KTZQ/ref=asc_df_B00RD0KTZQ/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=226005619422&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=14634775859409188358&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9046381&hvtargid=pla-420395423259&psc=1&th=1&psc=1



But sure there must be a quicker and more controlled way.


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## Ray (Jan 18, 2021)

There are battery powered backpack sprayers, but have you considered a moderately sized tank and electric pump?


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## Paphluvr (Jan 18, 2021)

2Gal. Poly pump sprayer. Long lasting, holds pressure longer than your little hand-held unit, easier to pump and relatively inexpensive.

Picture for reference as to type only.


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## podiver (Jan 19, 2021)

I would second Ray's suggestion of a small water storage container from Home Depot or Lowes as they are inexpensive and an aquarium pump. You could even use a bucket to be more mobile. It depends on your growing conditions and concerns for splashing water or runoff through your pots. There are numerous threads in the forum regarding watering methods for terrarium and windowsill growing.


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## NYEric (Jan 19, 2021)

We have 2 like in Paphluvr's post, but only 1.5 gallon size. But we have lots of plants. It takes my GF 5-6 hours for full water and feed days.


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## southernbelle (Jan 19, 2021)

merc said:


> I water my paphs/phrags once a week, but _it takes me literally all morning _to water my small collection of plants. There has to be a better way. I'm wondering if you guys could shed light on the watering methods and tools you use to water your plants.
> 
> Here is what I use:
> 
> ...


QUOTE]
I use a 10 gal. Plastic trash can (with fertilizer/additives) and a small electric pump with a 15’ 1/2” curly hose. On the end I use a short wand that I have removed the head from. I can adjust the flow on the water on the wand from slow to fast depending on size of the pot, so I am careful not to get water in the crown.
I bring my plants that need watering each day to a large sink and let them drain before returning to the table. I use an app called Errands that tells me what to water each day based on table number and a colored tag in each pot. I have about 100 plants so it goes pretty quickly as the most I need to water on any particular day is about 10. Wouldn’t work for everyone, but works for me.


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## merc (Jan 19, 2021)

i have a similar poly pump sprayer for outdoor garden tasks and thought about picking one up just for indoor plant watering, but was afraid water would splash onto the crown of the plant. what do you guys do to mitigate splash for the pump sprayers?


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## Paphluvr (Jan 19, 2021)

Don't have the spray set too coarsely, hold spray nozzle close to mix and complete watering before noon to allow plants time to dry. Also, because I am watering my plants one by one, if I get water in the crown I blow as much as I can out before returning them to their rack.


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## merc (Jan 20, 2021)

update! i was getting ready to put in an order for a fancy new big 2 gallon poly pump sprayer that had a neat little guard to keep liquids off nearby plants and my husband happened to walk in before i completed my purchase. i explained my pain points with my existing watering tools and helped me make a little DIY guard for my existing sprayer out of an aerosol bottle cap. works like a charm!






another issue i had with my existing sprayer was that tilting it caused it to suck up and spray air if it was less than half a tank full of liquid. my husband suggested replacing the rigid intake tube with a flexible, silicone tube and adding a weighted metal clunk at the end of it so it would always fall in the direction of the liquid in the tank. i'll be dropping by hobbytown this weekend to pick up the necessary parts for this swap.




while a 2 gallon poly pump sprayer would have been nice, a functional 1L sprayer is definitely way better than my dinky little 200mL squeeze bottles!


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## Phred (Jan 21, 2021)

I have a large collection and my system may help shorten your task. I mix my water in a pal and use a small fountain pump with a sink sprayer attached.


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## Phred (Jan 21, 2021)

I carry my trays to the sink and spray them one at a time.


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## musa (Jan 22, 2021)

I'm very old fashioned, I use a watering can (maybe s.o. remembers this high tech invention of the last millenium) with a longer pipe to reach each plant. Especially seedlings and small Paphs will get water in the crown which is easy to blow out with a simple plastic tube. The rest dampness will dry as I don't water after mid day.
What ever you do, watering will take some time...


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## Sherry H (Jan 22, 2021)

This is from Lowe’s I thoroughly rinse/water first with this hose head and then use pump for fertilizer. I have about a hundred paphs/phrags and get two sessions from each fill. Since I grow outside water/fertilize twice a week.


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## Sherry H (Jan 22, 2021)

Pump is automatic and hose head doesn’t disturb the soil


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## tomp (Jan 23, 2021)

Ray said:


> There are battery powered backpack sprayers, but have you considered a moderately sized tank and electric pump?


I use a 4 gallon Chapin 20 volt back pack sprayer to which I have added 20 feet of hose so I don’t have to carry it. Works great. on occasion I have also attached it to a hand truck if it needs to be moved around when full.
it is a good idea to completely dissolve granular fertilizers prior to pouring into the tank. Makes clean up easier.


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## Sherry H (Jan 23, 2021)

Wow how many ladies?


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## merc (Feb 7, 2021)

Sherry H said:


> Wow how many ladies?



i have 65 now and like 3 incoming orders waiting for mid-winter thaw so they can ship. heh!


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## merc (Feb 7, 2021)

to my husband's dismay i caved and bought a pump sprayer like y'all originally suggested. it has cut my watering time down from hours to minutes!  he was hoping we wouldn't have to buy and store a new orchid-thing-a-ma-jig in the house, but it is worth 1000x it's space and weight.


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## Ray (Feb 7, 2021)

I ended up getting a Petra 4100. It's a 4-gallon back-pack/rolling cart sprayer.


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## KateL (Feb 8, 2021)

My husband used to be an engineer, so this is my watering system. There are pipes to two spigots and a pressure tank so the water can be delivered at an even pressure in the upper most part of our yard. We hand water; no irrigation or misters. But adding a siphon for in-line fertilizer has saved us a ton of time.


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## BrucherT (Feb 8, 2021)

Phred said:


> I carry my trays to the sink and spray them one at a time.View attachment 24894
> View attachment 24895


Aggh water on Brachy leaves??!?!?!


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## BrucherT (Feb 8, 2021)

merc said:


> to my husband's dismay i caved and bought a pump sprayer like y'all originally suggested. it has cut my watering time down from hours to minutes!  he was hoping we wouldn't have to buy and store a new orchid-thing-a-ma-jig in the house, but it is worth 1000x it's space and weight.



Curious to see yours.


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## merc (Feb 12, 2021)

BrucherT said:


> Curious to see yours.



I got a little 1 gallon Solo brand sprayer like Paphlvr posted since I only have a handful of plants. Nothing super big or fancy.


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## Duck Slipper (Feb 13, 2021)

NYEric said:


> We have 2 like in Paphluvr's post, but only 1.5 gallon size. But we have lots of plants. It takes my GF 5-6 hours for full water and feed days.


Good GF!!


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## Duck Slipper (Feb 13, 2021)

I’ve wondered how everyone handles all the watering and wastewater issues. About two years ago I made this water cart. I bought the cart, chemical tank, hose and battery off of Amazon, and the pump motor from an on line retailer. The tray is custom made by a local heat/air business. I empty the 5 gallon buckets by hand


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## tomp (Feb 13, 2021)

KateL said:


> My husband used to be an engineer, so this is my watering system. There are pipes to two spigots and a pressure tank so the water can be delivered at an even pressure in the upper most part of our yard. We hand water; no irrigation or misters. But adding a siphon for in-line fertilizer has saved us a ton of time.
> View attachment 25298


Kate, looks like your husband not only was an engineer but still is a fine one. I was/is also and that’s a very impressive system.


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## BrucherT (Feb 14, 2021)

Duck Slipper said:


> I’ve wondered how everyone handles all the watering and wastewater issues. About two years ago I made this water cart. I bought the cart, chemical tank, hose and battery off of Amazon, and the pump motor from an on line retailer. The tray is custom made by a local heat/air business. I empty the 5 gallon buckets by handView attachment 25440
> View attachment 25441


This is killer. I have no tech abilities. I would pay you to set this up for me. Just the cart; I handle the waste water by reusing it on nonorchid plants all winter and weed all summer.


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## Duck Slipper (Feb 14, 2021)

BrucherT said:


> This is killer. I have no tech abilities. I would pay you to set this up for me. Just the cart; I handle the waste water by reusing it on nonorchid plants all winter and weed all summer.


Really isn’t a big job. I decided on a battery operated motor compared to 110v so I could use it on outside plants and also all the orchids get moved out for the summer. This motor pumps a rated 3.7 gpm. For indoors I might go a like smaller to keep splashing down, but it is great for outdoors or if you have a greenhouse.
Buy a motor with a pressure switch so you can control it with a hand operated water wand. I use a Dramm 1000 water breaker and tried a smaller breaker but it had to much pressure with this motor and splashed too much.


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## richgarrison (Feb 15, 2021)

Duck Slipper said:


> Really isn’t a big job. I decided on a battery operated motor compared to 110v so I could use it on outside plants and also all the orchids get moved out for the summer. This motor pumps a rated 3.7 gpm. For indoors I might go a like smaller to keep splashing down, but it is great for outdoors or if you have a greenhouse.
> Buy a motor with a pressure switch so you can control it with a hand operated water wand. I use a Dramm 1000 water breaker and tried a smaller breaker but it had to much pressure with this motor and splashed too much.



check tractor supply for the tank and pump setup.. they have some rigs waiting for a battery and a cart... check here i was surprised when i saw how reasonably priced they were...


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## Djthomp28 (Feb 15, 2021)

I used tank that is close to this for the main orchid area. Mine is 15 gallons, but 25 would be better. I also have a couple of 2 gallon manual pump sprayers for the auxiliary areas and the occasional chemical application. there is enough room in the bottom of the trays to water in place. generally the water evaporates, but occasionally I have to siphon it out. I water a few things, like baskets and mounts, over a 5 gallon bucket.


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## Duck Slipper (Feb 15, 2021)

richgarrison said:


> check tractor supply for the tank and pump setup.. they have some rigs waiting for a battery and a cart... check here i was surprised when i saw how reasonably priced they were...


I looked at tractor supply and use rigs like that. Probably the best deal. There is a wide variety of pump motors available That you could use when the pump burns up. You will be turning your pump on and off a lot, compared to spraying consantly. That’s what will make your pressure switch go out or just the pump. Then you could upgrade to a better pump.


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## merc (Feb 22, 2021)

We have one of these guys that I tote around with a Gorilla garden cart for watering the outdoor plants where the hose doesn’t reach, which is basically everywhere. Heh. I borrow/steal the battery from our boat’s fish finder device to power the pump/sprayer.









Spot Sprayer - 9 Gallon


Ideal for applying insecticides and herbicides. Chemical resistant polyethylene tank. 12 Volt connection cables. adjustable cone spray nozzle. 18" handgun with 10f coiled hose. Includes attachment straps. Glyphosate compatible.




www.agcareproducts.com





This would be overkill for my current orchid setup, but thought I would share because I just looked up prices for a water tank on wheels and they’re ridiculously overpriced, especially on Amazon. I second checking out farm supply stores over big box retailers for more reasonable prices for this kind of stuff.


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## merc (Feb 22, 2021)

Djthomp28 said:


> I used tank that is close to this for the main orchid area. Mine is 15 gallons, but 25 would be better. I also have a couple of 2 gallon manual pump sprayers for the auxiliary areas and the occasional chemical application. there is enough room in the bottom of the trays to water in place. generally the water evaporates, but occasionally I have to siphon it out. I water a few things, like baskets and mounts, over a 5 gallon bucket.


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