How to Fertilize Phalaenopsis Orchids? A Detailed Guide to Fertilizing Timing and Humidity

With its graceful form, the "Phalaenopsis" (moth orchid) placed at home not only easily catches the eye, but also lives up to the beautiful meaning behind the Phalaenopsis flower language. However, many beginners assume that growing flowers is simple, that as long as you water them and give them some light, they will thrive. In fact, if you add the step of "fertilizing" before the flowering period, the blooming period can be extended by quite a bit.

In the process of growing Phalaenopsis, fertilizing is overlooked by many people. To grow them well, nutrients are naturally essential, especially fertilizing 1 week after the seedling recovery period. How exactly do you do it? First, you can use a 3000-fold balanced compound fertilizer (15-15-15); when watering, control the amount well, and once you see the sphagnum moss at the bottom of the pot is three-tenths wet, that is enough - this is what is commonly called "three-tenths water." During this period, keep the temperature at 23 to 25°C and control the light at 8000 lux.

Afterwards, once you see the seedling grow new roots - that is, when you can see new root tips emerging outside the sphagnum moss in the transparent cup - you can raise the fertilizer water concentration to 2000-fold, then switch the fertilizer to nitrogen fertilizer (30-15-15) and alternate it with the balanced fertilizer, and change the watering principle to "five-tenths water," meaning the sphagnum moss at the bottom of the pot being five-tenths wet is enough.

Then, after about three months, the root system has grown abundantly and vigorously, and by summer you can water with "seven-tenths water," which allows the roots to fully absorb nutrients. Make the watering state consistent as "water when dry, dry out between waterings." Moreover, throughout the entire growing period you must water with fertilizer-containing water, but no matter when, you must never water excessively, because doing so easily causes root rot, especially when the temperature is low and the humidity is high, when you need to pay attention to controlling water.

Finally, throughout the entire growing period you must use purified water with a pH value of around 7.2 (use water collected overnight; after settling over time, the water source is better). Also, every day carefully record the temperature, humidity, light conditions, and the growth state of the seedlings, so that once a problem is found, you can promptly adjust your management methods and grow the Phalaenopsis more robustly.