Is anybody supplementing or measuring CO2 levels in their orchid plants environment?
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CO2 level monitoring
- Thread starter gonewild
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For orchids.
When we were in commercial production, yes. One needs a tightly sealed environment to successfully increase CO2 levels. It only makes sense when all other factors are optimized. Think Dutch growers at the top of their game. The technology is simple but to see results that justify the expense is not.
i agree that the results of optimizing CO2 levels would barely be noticeable in your plants if your goal is increasing vigor, bloom counts, overall plant health etc. If you're just wanting to tinker and experiment, though, sure, could be fun.
I messed around with enriching the carbon dioxide for a while, using a controller that was on for “so many” seconds, “so many” times per minute - the latter being the adjusted setting for concentration.
Level testing was a premade glass tube with a premixed reagent that changed color once opened and left exposed to the atmosphere for a few minutes.
I was attempting this in a 14’ x 18’, “well sealed” greenhouse. It wasn’t, as it turned out, so that made keeping the level up was a super challenge, as was hauling around the gas cylinders and paying for them.
I did manage to achieve 1500 ppm for about 3 months and saw no discernible change in anything but my bank account.
Level testing was a premade glass tube with a premixed reagent that changed color once opened and left exposed to the atmosphere for a few minutes.
I was attempting this in a 14’ x 18’, “well sealed” greenhouse. It wasn’t, as it turned out, so that made keeping the level up was a super challenge, as was hauling around the gas cylinders and paying for them.
I did manage to achieve 1500 ppm for about 3 months and saw no discernible change in anything but my bank account.
Interesting question on possibly the most overlooked variable in plant growth! It would be fun to a careful study of CO2 on various orchid genera.
I agree with the others that you need a tightly sealed and precisely optimized environment for it to make much of a difference. If all other variables are controlled exactly you could see CO2 fall below required levels. I see it often used in high tech cut flower greenhouses in the Netherlands where the plants (mostly annuals) are growing so quickly and there are so many thousands in the same place that CO2 becomes the limiting factor in their continued growth. I think you see it used more often in northern climates where structures are sealed tightly in the cold months to maintain heat. In a well ventilated system it would be more beneficial to increase airflow than to add CO2. Horizontal air flow fans keep the air mixed which reduces "dead" zones.
In a small space like a terrarium I suppose you could use a yeast/sugar type CO2 generator as they do in planted aquariums or buy CO2 tanks. On a large scale they tend to make CO2 from combustion of natural gas but then you need to be careful not to add toxic gases to the environment. The most clever systems can capture the CO2 from the heating fuel and pump it back into the greenhouse.
I agree with the others that you need a tightly sealed and precisely optimized environment for it to make much of a difference. If all other variables are controlled exactly you could see CO2 fall below required levels. I see it often used in high tech cut flower greenhouses in the Netherlands where the plants (mostly annuals) are growing so quickly and there are so many thousands in the same place that CO2 becomes the limiting factor in their continued growth. I think you see it used more often in northern climates where structures are sealed tightly in the cold months to maintain heat. In a well ventilated system it would be more beneficial to increase airflow than to add CO2. Horizontal air flow fans keep the air mixed which reduces "dead" zones.
In a small space like a terrarium I suppose you could use a yeast/sugar type CO2 generator as they do in planted aquariums or buy CO2 tanks. On a large scale they tend to make CO2 from combustion of natural gas but then you need to be careful not to add toxic gases to the environment. The most clever systems can capture the CO2 from the heating fuel and pump it back into the greenhouse.
