Winter is well and truely upon us at the moment, with the dropping of temperatures we often get asked the question. How do I care for my orchids during the cold wet winters?
This is a large topic as not all orchids are the same, there are many varieties such as you cymbidiums who dont mind the cold spell, while at the other end of the spectrum, plants like our hardcane dendrobiums struggle with the cold temperatures we receive here in Caboolture. Our temperatures go down to 2 degrees during winter, which is a little cold for a lot of varieties, but we are glad we dont get frost.
So what are the basics, we number one would be reducing your watering, we do this in varying degrees with all our plants. Some like our Catasetums are cut back to a once a month light water, with others like our Cattleyas going from a water every 4 days to a once a week water. The orchid varieties we water the least are our Catasetums, softcane Dendrobiums and our hardcane Dendrobiums. This helps to reduce any rotting during their dormant cycle, the softcanes will flower better with a break from heavy watering and it has always been said to limit water and fertiliser from mothers day to fathers day. If youn find come spring your hardcane Dendrobiums dont shoot a new growth but instead they produce a keiki, then they have had too juch water over winter and the lead growth has had its eyes rot out.
One big problem, especially on those cold winter nights is rain. The best way to get around this is bring orchids who dont like the cold rain indoors or you can put a cover over your shadehouse depending on size. We know a few people who have a plastic cover they pull over the top for winter. The ones we ensure are under cover for the winter are our Phalaenopsis, Paphiopedilums, Grammatophyllums and Miltoniopsis.
Seasol is a great product to help yopur orchids get through the colder winter months, just add the recomended dose to your fertilising scheduale. Seasoil strengthens the plants cell walls making them stronger and less susceptable to the damage the cold brings. It is said to add a 5-10 degree buffer to the plant, so if its 5 degrees, the orchid registeres this as it being 10-15 degrees.
Winter is well and truly upon us at the moment, and with the dropping of temperatures we often get asked the question: How do I care for my orchids during the cold wet winters?
This is a large topic as not all orchids are the same. There are many varieties such as cymbidiums, which don't mind the cold spell, while at the other end of the spectrum, plants like our hardcane dendrobiums struggle with the cold temperatures we receive here in Caboolture. Our temperatures go down to 2 degrees during winter, which is a little cold for a lot of varieties, but we are glad we don't get frost.
So what are the basics? Number one would be reducing your watering. We do this in varying degrees with all our plants. Some, like our Catasetums, are cut back to a once-a-month light water, while others like our Cattleyas go from watering every 4 days to once a week. The orchid varieties we water the least are our Catasetums, softcane dendrobiums and hardcane dendrobiums. This helps reduce any rotting during their dormant cycle. The softcanes will flower better with a break from heavy watering, and it has always been said to limit water and fertiliser from Mother's Day to Father's Day. If you find that come spring your hardcane dendrobiums don't shoot new growth but instead produce a keiki, then they have had too much water over winter and the lead growth has had its eyes rot out.
One big problem, especially on those cold winter nights, is rain. The best way to get around this is to bring orchids that don't like the cold rain indoors, or you can put a cover over your shadehouse depending on its size. We know a few people who have a plastic cover they pull over the top for winter. The ones we ensure are under cover for the winter are our Phalaenopsis, Paphiopedilums, Grammatophyllums and Miltoniopsis.
Seasol is a great product to help your orchids get through the colder winter months. Just add the recommended dose to your fertilising schedule. Seasol strengthens the plants' cell walls, making them stronger and less susceptible to the damage the cold brings. It is said to add a 5–10 degree buffer to the plant, so if it's 5 degrees, the orchid registers this as being 10–15 degrees.