Search results

I have been following this thread with interest, as I'm in the process of examining my Paph and Phrag collection in Semi-hydro the past few days. Generalizing I'd say it's great for Phrags and less than ideal for Paphs. But that doesn't really address what I believe is important here. Ever...

Each genus has a favored ratio of water and air at the roots. Increase one and or reduce the other. Usually better to increase water by changing medium or container. Many do well in clay pot pot with holes, or a basket of some sort. These are epiphytes. Ray is correct

The key, as with most orchid genera is keeping a proper ait to water ratio at the roots. What you are doing may well work. Clay pots and moss are another option as is semi hydro.

My friend Ray said," “Overwatering can kill orchids”. Nope. Insufficient air to the roots does it. " Darn right, Ray. I think understanding principles is much more important than having "rules," which presumably are based on the principles but may not be understood. And what I'm learning from...

He packs the moss very tightly, and that combined with air at the bottom of the pot and the clay itself causes relatively fast drying, but I think the air is the important element rather than the drying, which is just another way to get air to the roots. Our plastic pots kill a lot of plants.

I grow almost exclusively Semi-hydroponically, so I do not use these. BUT, I do place an inverted small empty plastic net pot at the bottom of each pot, as I think most orchids prefer some air at the roots, which is the whole purpose of the air cone pot. However, the underlying principle is...

Good name, Ray--the Goldilocks Principle, neither too wet or too dry. Here is how I would state it: "Healthy roots are critical to orchid plant health. The velamen covering the roots is kept healthy by maintaining an acceptable ratio of air and water at the roots. This ratio may vary between...

Wonder if it would slow down senescence on Dracula

Here is my Gloria Naugle 'Red." I bought it from Paph Paradise. It bloomed for the first time last fall. If cloning of Paphs is now possible, that could improve what we have available (but possibly limit breeding).

In the end, it's only about the air/water balance in the environment, so changing the container may have as much impact on this balance as the medium. Change to clay or basket and you can use a wetter medium.

Thanks for your reply, Ray. Very useful to have a ceramics engineer here. I think I tried one clay pot in S/H. Not even sure where the picture is. Might be useful to experiment more. You have confirmed what I have observed and what I have suspected, and in a sense it confirms what Alan does...

I agree with Ray about one size not fitting all, as there are many variables, but I think the most important principle to follow is to find the best air/water balance for my own situation. Orchids want adequate of both, and over time this is impossible to do with most organic mixes, as they...

Well, Ray, I water first so as to leach out the salts, but then we don't really know that it works! LOL. If I'd thought of it a couple of weeks ago before starting fertilizer again, I might have tried some experiments. Perhaps I still have some leca outside (that's also been rained on!) that...

Thanks, Ray, for your input. I have always watered first and then fertilized, but that doesn't mean it's right. However, I think you have noted elsewhere that the game is quite different for those of us growing in semi-hydro, which means the roots are always wet and hydrated. This would be...

It's good to see someone in the U.S. interested in Disas, particularly if you're going to be selling them, Rob. I have a long history of killing them! I've been interested since I saw Acme Orchids in Ft. Bragg, CA, growing them from seed in a peat lite mix. Another, the Burkhardts, reached by...

I think I still have a Marin link, or perhaps we're meeting with them jointly still. LOL. If not, I'd be ditching my own meeting, as I'd like to hear your talk. You give some of the best talks out there. Thanks for your reply. But are you really giving up your talks on S/H? That would be...

I suspect in person lectures will largely be superseded in the future. Which talk are you giving at Marin? They meet the same night as Mt. Baker and we often "share" on Zoom. I don't know if our new VP will continue that practice, but it has worked well in the past. We had planned to meet in...

Five Cities, I hope, as they share theirs. Ray, your talks are among the best I've heard, and frankly are better than mine. Traveling speakers that require air travel are largely now a thing of the past. I lowered my price a d say bring as many as you like. Without travel 2 hours is not a lot...

Good points, Ray. Another difference with S/H. As I'm sure you are aware, some growers believe fertilize first, water after, others the opposite. Of course, with S/H, it's really fertilize all the time. Ironically, the 1/6 tsp required for that (regardless of how many times a week one...

So, Ray, using your own K-Lite, that comes out to 2/3 tsp/gal, which is more than I use now, watering 2 times per week. But as I recall there's a time element as well, which I thought was one week, and yet your container says 25 ppm N for every watering, for me that's in S/H. I should test my...