Humidity for growing orchids is a double-edged sword: use it right and the leaves thrive, use it wrong and everything dies

Environmental humidity is a double-edged sword for growing orchids: use it well and the orchid leaves flourish, use it poorly and the orchid plants die off

Most orchids like a humid environment, there is no doubt about that. The places where we find wild orchids on the mountain are mostly this kind of environment. Sometimes the Good Photography Farmer also finds wild orchids in dry places, but their leaves are clearly not as beautiful as those in humid places.

As a flowering plant valued both for its fragrance and its leaves, whether an orchid's leaf shape is beautiful directly affects its ornamental value. Some books on how to grow orchids also record that the micro-environment for growing orchids needs increased air humidity. A humid micro-environment can also reduce watering frequency and better prevent root rot caused by overwatering.

The books say that orchid growth is divided into two types: vegetative growth and reproductive growth. Vegetative growth refers to the stage from after flowering to the bud-forming period of the following year, when new shoots emerge and new seedlings grow. Reproductive growth is the stage from bud formation to flowering. Orchids need humidity most during the vegetative growth period; if it is too dry, new seedlings tend to stall and are not sturdy enough.

New seedlings grown in a humid environment have glossy green leaves, an elegant and upright leaf posture, and will not show withered yellow leaf tips. But humidity is also a double-edged sword: if the humidity is too high and the environmental ventilation conditions are poor, orchid leaves will develop black spots, black leaf tips, rotting new seedlings, and so on.

At the same time, most orchid pathogens like a humid environment, and the temperature during the vegetative growth period is also suitable for pathogen reproduction, so pathogens are especially easy to breed. We need a humid environment to grow good orchid leaves, and we also need to prevent disease caused by excessive humidity. The Good Photography Farmer does not have specialized professional instruments to measure humidity, nor will he talk about those profound professional terms. This is what the Good Photography Farmer does about orchid environmental humidity.

The Good Photography Farmer's orchid pots are placed on the ground, and the greenhouse is open-air with a layer of shade netting added on top. When it rains, rainwater can fall into the orchid shed. Because the orchid shed is ventilated on all sides, the relative temperature is a bit lower than the surroundings. As for humidity, I look at the soil on the ground: if the soil color is a bit whitish, it needs spraying with water to retain moisture. Generally speaking, manual operation is needed only rarely, because the ground of the orchid shed absorbs a lot of water when it rains. This water evaporates during dry spells and strengthens the humidity inside the orchid shed.

Simply put: orchids must grow in a humid environment, but an environment that is too wet with poor ventilation easily breeds disease. So it is said: success comes from humidity, and failure comes from humidity too.