Orchids die as soon as you water them? The reason is completely unexpected

As a plant, orchids definitely need water during their growth. Although the principle of growing orchids is "better dry than wet," it is certain that not watering them (with no rain exposure) will not work. These past few days, Haoshe Farmer has been talking with orchid friends, and several of them reported the same problem: why do orchids die or wither as soon as they are watered?

These orchid friends are not in the same city, so Haoshe Farmer has temporarily ruled out the possibility of poor water quality. According to them, every time after watering, within three days, the seedlings will definitely wither, and then it slowly spreads until the entire seedling completely dies. The growing methods and environments of these orchid friends are also all different, so Haoshe Farmer has summarized the possible problems discovered during the conversations with them, to discuss together with netizens.

The so-called death as soon as you water means that before watering, the orchid seedlings were still growing fairly normally. Of course, these orchid friends are all beginners who just started learning to grow orchids this year. One of them uses a porcelain pot. This kind of white porcelain pot is often seen in flower shops and is indeed quite beautiful, but it is really not suitable for growing orchids. Porcelain pots are too dense, and generally the drainage hole at the bottom of a small porcelain pot is not large, and there are no side holes. It is very easy for water to accumulate, and it is also not good for air circulation inside the pot and respiration of the root system.

The second orchid friend is rather impatient, and every time he waters, he must add fertilizer. Beginners in orchid growing often do this, just wanting their orchid seedlings to grow strong quickly. But fertilizing regardless of season is not beneficial to orchids. We all know that in summer the watering frequency is a bit higher than in other seasons. But under the high temperatures of summer, orchid seedlings are in a dormant state and absorb very little of the applied fertilizer. Most of the fertilizer accumulates in the potting soil, thereby causing fertilizer damage and root rot.

The third orchid friend is the carefree type. When talking with Haoshe Farmer, he said that each time he waters, he is afraid water will leak onto the inner balcony, so he always moves them to the flower rack on the outer balcony to do it. The outer balcony (south-facing) has no shading facilities, and every time he waters, he chooses around 10 a.m., so after watering, the orchids remain under the sunlight, and usually only after they have drained in the afternoon does he move them back in. Haoshe Farmer has done an experiment: at noon under direct sunlight, the temperature inside a flower pot with wet growing medium can reach above 40°C, and such a temperature is enough to smother and rot orchid roots. If the seedlings do not die, it would be a miracle.

Orchids dying as soon as they are watered is not a problem with the water, nor a problem with the orchids, but a problem with method, timing, utensils, and so on. Haoshe Farmer feels that watering orchids is not very difficult, as long as you can avoid some common-sense mistakes.

You are welcome to share your valuable experience. If you like orchids, follow Haoshe Farmer, who often uses the lens to take you up the mountain to admire wild orchids.