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Doritaenopsis
Little Gem Stripes
'Stars' blooms
prolifically.
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* Basic orchid
food provide
nitrogen(N),
phosphorus(P)
and
potassium(K)
This N-P-K
ratio
corresponds to
the fertilizer
ratio shown on
the package,
such as
30-10-10 or
10-20-10.
Fertilizers
high in N are
formulated for
growth, while
those high
in P
generally
encourage
blooming.
* Many
orchid foods
are high in
urea nitrogen,
which takes
time to break
down, and
is washed out
of the mix
before it is of
any use to the
plant. A
non-urea nitrogen
formula will
provide
nitrogen in a
form
immediately
usable by the
plant. U
se a high
nitrogen
fertilizer with
bark
mixes--this
increases
bacterial
activity which
then
provides additional
nitrogen in
usable
form to
the
orchid.
A dilute
Organic Orchid
Fertilizer
can also
be applied a a
foliar feed to
the lower leaf
surface.
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FERTILIZING YOUR MOTH
ORCHIDS
Phalaenopsis
will do well with
regular fertilizing, but will
suffer, like most orchids, if
excess fertilizer is applied.
As a rule of thumb, apply house
plant fertilizer at half the
strength recommended for indoor
plants. Fertilizers
formulated for orchids are now
widely available so we suggest
you use those-simply follow the
instructions prvided by the
manufacturer.
F
or phalaenopsis
orchids potted in a bark
mix, use an orchid fertilizer
with a higher nitrogen content
(such as 30-10-10) or a
'urea-free' formulation. For
those plants in a peat-based
mix, or sphagnum moss,
a balanced 20-20-20
formulation or 20-10-20 is
fine(see box for more
information).
In
both cases, switch to a
'blossom inducing' fertilizer
(such as 10-20-10) once new
leaves have matured, generally
in the later summer and
continue to use this during
flowering.
Alternatively, switch between
fertilizers each time you
feed.
HOW OFTEN
SHOULD I FEED
PHALAENOPSIS?
Fertilize plants 2-3 times a
month during the warmer months
and 1-2 times per month during
the winter when growth is
slower. Unless you are
using rain, or reverse osmosis
water that is very
pure, you should
flush your plants
thoroughly with water at least
once a month to get rid of
excess salts.
Remeber, orchids do
not need as much fertilizer as
other house plants or garden
plants. If you overfeed your
plants, they will not grow
faster or bloom better.
Instead:
- you
will cause salts to build
up in the growing mix which
will damage roots and slow
growth
-you will waste your money
-you will pollute the
environment as the excess
fertilizer salts eventually
will end up in ground
water
- Many
growers, myself included,
follow a 'weakly weekly'
fertilizer schedule, This means
you fertilize you orchids every
week but only at about
quarter-strength. The advantage
of this is that plants receive
a consistent amount of food at
all times. You can adjust the
amount of fertilizer you
provide depending on the season
slightly.
OTHER
TIPS
Non-urea
low-strength
organic orchid
fertilizer
can be
applied frequently to your
orchids with little chance
of overfeeding.
It comes
in a spray bottle
so can also
be applied as a foliar feed to
the underside
of leaves,
and roots which orchids benefit
from.
Premium orchid
food have
added micronutrients such as
calcium, magnesium boron,
copper etc that plants need
these in very small amounts to
stay healthy. This is less of a
worry if you use tap water
which often have many
of these nutrients in
them. Nevertheless, its a
good idea to use a premium
orchid food, about once a month
just to be sure your orchid is
getting what it needs beyond
the basic N-P-K formula.
If you are using purified
reverse osmosis (RO water)
which has no nutrients, you
will definitely need a complete
orchid food formulated
especially for RO.
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