Using coal cinders to cultivate orchids achieves encouraging results

Using coal cinders entirely as growing medium on a large scalecultivationorchids, inorchidcultivationhistory there is no precedent. This bold attempt not only solved a series of problems encountered in large-scale open-air pottedorchids, but also achieved relatively good results. (1) Common orchids grow vigorously At present, in the orchid garden of the landscaping team, there are more than 17,000 pots of orchids experimentallycultivatedwith coal cinders. The signs of vigorous growth are: 1. New roots grow fast and in large numbers, old roots extend and branch, the roots are thick and plump, and snow-white and crystal-clear in color, especially the more than 1,000 pots ofCymbidium sinensepurchased in Shunde, originally planted in pond mud, had black roots and weak seedlings, and now their recovery momentum is very strong; 2. Self-collectedwild-collected orchidsshow reduced dry-leaf phenomenon, and the lifespan of old pseudobulbs is extended; 3. Newly sprouted leaf buds are strong and numerous; 4. The leaves of matured grown seedlings are short and thick (compared with the parent generation), the leaf color is emerald green and lustrous, with no black spots or scorched tips. (2) Variegated line-art orchids have good inheritance of variation We used pure coal cinders as growing medium to trial-plant line-art orchids such as Golden Beak, Golden Edge, Silver Beak, and Silver Edge. The leaves of the newly sprouted seedlings are shorter, wider, and thicker than those of the parent generation. The golden and silvery-white lines are clearer, the leaf texture is bright and oilily lustrous, and the heredity and progressive variation of the line art are better. (3) Save investment, reduce costs, increase benefits Using coal cinders as growing medium for large-scale open-air potted orchid cultivation has been successful, which not only saves all the investment in building rainproof orchid sheds and their ancillary facilities, but also reduces cultivation costs and increases income. 1. Using coal cinders as growing medium to plant orchids solved the problem of root rot and seedling death, improved theorchids'survival rate and propagation rate, and thereby increased the marketable rate. 2. Using coal cinders as growing medium, the cost of growing medium per pot is 0.10 yuan, which is a reduction of 20 times and 30 times compared with 2 yuan for pond mud and 3 yuan for expanded clay pellets. 3. Because cultivating orchids with coal cinders is soilless cultivation, there are fewer diseases and insect pests, which facilitates orchid export quarantine and reduces costs. 4. Using coal cinders of suitable particle size and planting orchids in two layers increased labor efficiency by 100 percent, saving labor and time, and is more suitable for large-scale repotting and transplanting. Li Zhongmin, Liu Jinrong