Integrated moisture measurement, drainage and aeration for orchid pots makes orchid growing easier

Growing orchidsWatering is one of the hardest tasks for orchid lovers to get right. In the orchid world there is a saying:Growing orchidsis easy to grasp in a moment, but watering takes three years of skill." That is indeed the case, and many beginnersgrowing orchidsoften ask how to water. This question cannot simply be answered with one sweeping rule; it should be treated differently according to various actual conditions. As for how many days between waterings and when it is best to water, in the past some determined watering by weighing the orchid pot, some watered by looking at the potting soil, and some watered by checking whether the pot was dry or wet. This works for people with years of orchid-growing experience, but for newcomers to the orchid world it is hard to master. Have you not seen that some beginners'orchidseither suffer root rot and fail to grow, or get scorched leaf tips, yellow leaves and disease, and in severe cases die. Especially when quite a few fine varieties and famous cultivar seedlings are killed, it is truly a great pity. What is the reason? Mainly improper watering. To get through the watering hurdle well, in growing orchids we must first observe moreorchids' growth characteristics and understand their needs throughout the whole growth process. Generally speaking, orchid roots differ from the roots of other plants, so their growth requires a special environment: it must have soil rich in trace nutrients yet loose, airy and moderately dry-wet. Water is the source of plant life; without enough water, orchid leaves cannot carry out photosynthesis, and during theorchidgrowing period, if the soil stays dry too long, the root crown will wilt, affecting normal growth of the seedlings; but too much water will cause oxygen deficiency. If the potting soil stays wet and stuffy for a long time, it will affect the respiration of orchid roots, causing suffocation and rot, and leading to seedling death. Orchids are semi-aerial epiphytic fleshy roots and are averse to oxygen deficiency and stuffy roots in the pot. Many beginners fail because the potting soil is soggy and wet, since they cannot see whether there is water in the soil and, fearing the seedlings will die of drought, they water too frequently. Therefore, controlling the dry-wet degree of the potting soil iscultivatingorchidflowersan important step. After long repeated practice, the author finally found that hard work pays off, and worked out an orchid-growing technique in which aeration tubes are placed in the potting soil, integrating moisture measurement, drainage and aeration, with very good results. Once you master it, anyone can master the timing of watering, and orchid lovers all have the possibility of growing good orchids. The specific method is very simple: when planting orchids, place one or several aeration tubes with small holes diagonally in orchid pots of different textures, different specifications and different potting media. The number and length of tubes should be determined according to the size and specification of the orchid pot: for a 10-15 cm pot, 1 tube is enough; for a 15-20 cm pot, place 2 tubes. This tube can normally be used for drainage and aeration, can make the potting soil absorb water evenly and prevent half-way watering. It can also let the potting soil breathe and allow air circulation around the roots. At the same time, it can serve as a window for measuring the water content of the potting soil; that is, insert a moisture meter into the tube for a period and then pull it out to read the value and know whether the potting soil is dry or wet. To test whether the potting soil is dry or wet, you can also use a bamboo knitting needle or a bamboo skewer for lamb kebabs, roll a paper napkin around it and gently insert it to the bottom of the tube, then after 2-4 hours take it out and check whether the napkin is dry or wet to decide whether to water. Note that the napkin on the bamboo skewer must be rolled tightly to prevent it from falling off into the tube. The tube inserted into the orchid pot should not be too large; a large tube will take up space in the orchid pot and affect orchid root growth. The holes drilled in the tube also must not be too large; if the holes are large, potting soil will seep into the tube and orchid roots will also grow into the holes, affecting the results. For the tube, a 16 mm diameter D-PVC flame-retardant cold-bend electrical conduit is sufficient. Use an electric drill with a 2-3 mm bit to drill 6 rows of holes, with a hole spacing of 8-10 mm, drilling holes over the whole tube. The tube length should be the height of the orchid pot plus 20%, because the tube is placed diagonally and the tube head should also be exposed at the pot surface; the lower end of the tube should face the outer edge of the bottom hole of the pot, and must not be placed vertically facing the bottom hole or against the pot rim, otherwise it will affect orchid planting and the accuracy of moisture measurement. If it is a large pot and multiple tubes need to be placed, each tube must not be too close to the others. The small bamboo skewer used for testing also must not be left in the tube for a long time, so as not to affect the effectiveness of inserting the skewer. For accurate testing and convenient management, in large-scale orchid growing, if the pots used for planting orchids can be made consistent in texture and size and the potting medium is also consistent, then it is only necessary to select 2-3 points (pots) around the periphery and in the center and bury tubes there to measure moisture. If the orchid pots differ in texture, size and potting medium, this selective-point moisture measurement method will make sweeping generalizations and mislead watering. If selective-point moisture measurement shows situations that are very far apart, then you should consider whether shading and heat exposure in the orchid shed are uneven, and improve the structure of the orchid shed to achieve balanced dry-wet differences within the shed. If it is home orchid growing in small quantities, then there is no such restriction. You can place a test tube in every pot and water as needed when the time comes. (Jiangxi  Cai Zhenkun)