The Role of Water in Orchid Care
We can thank orchid and other flower growers, in part, for the recent movement to recycle the water that reaches our homes, especially that which comes down as rain. If you are an orchid grower orchids, this is a topic you might like to investigate.
Orchids, like other plants, have specific likes and dislikes as to the water provided them to nourish their roots. Most of them will not do well in hard water. Unfortunately, the water that comes out of the faucets in many locales is too hard for orchids to respond as well as we might like. For the most part, hard water won’t kill them. It might stunt their growth, though, or keep them from ever blooming as wonderfully as they might have.
A saving grace about orchid plants is the fact that they have thick, fleshy roots that can hold up to hard water better than many other sorts of plants. Woody plants, as an example, with their fine root system, are too often killed by water that is too hard. Nontheless, you should try to avoid using hard water on orchid plants if you can possibly avoid it.
You can of course buy filters that attach to your water line to soften your water while removing various types of unwanted impurities. But nothing is better than good old rainwater when it comes to doing right by orchids! After all, this is the way nature waters plants in the wild around the world.
Many companies manufacture rain barrels that are great for catching and storing rainwater until you need it. Many people set up the barrels beneath the rainspouts coming from their roofs. With a little planning and work, you could set up several barrels to direct water right to your orchids. Then your watering work, assuming you live in a fairly rainy area, becomes almost hands free.
Whatever kind of water you decide to use, don’t put it on plants if it is chilly. For example, I would not use water collected from an outside faucet on a cold day, without first bringing it to room temperature in my home or in the greenhouse. Cold water can result in spots on the plants, rot the growths and damage the roots.
Some orchids will get benefit from water with some lime mixed with it. In years gone by, people noticed that imported Cypripedium orchids often were covered with chalky lime deposits owing to the plants having grown in limestone rock crevices where water trickled down upon them. So if you have a Cypripedium, you could experiment with adding lime to the water, a little at first and then more if you determine that the plant is responding well to it.
The art and science of orchid cultivation is a fascinating subject. Orchid growing is not as hard as some people make it out to be, but you need to arm yourself with solid information before plunging in to this rewarding pastime.
The most complete guidebook to expert orchid cultivation, as increasing numbers are learning, is Orchid Care Expert by master orchid grower Nigel Howard, which is available to be downloaded from the web. Howard’s well-written guide constitutes a thorough education all to itself. And, it’s perfect for novices as well as the more experienced orchid growers. Also, be sure to visit this Orchid Secrets web site, which contains an ever-growing database of postings on a wide range of aspects of orchid care.
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