[mayres]

Don't feel alone! There are about as many ideas on this as there are available fertilizers. Even the growers that raise thousands and thousands of plants have different ideas on what type of fertilizer you "should" use. I have also noted the "balanced" food being suggested many times by forum members. I have been using a product marketed by a major california orchid grower that actually has a smaller middle number than the other two. I believe the blossom booster formulas should be used just prior and during the time frame you would normally expect your plants to be spiking - we'll see what others weigh in on this - I've personally never used one. At this point my suggestion is to find a person or grower that grows excellent orchids year in and year out and start your regimen by copying them somewhat. Then you can experiment and deviate from this somewhat as time goes on if your growing conditions are somewhat different or as your plant mix varies. It is obviously not an exact science but somewhat of an art - finding all the mixes between environmental conditions and human care that makes your plants most "happy". Enjoy! mike