Never Water Orchids?

[wu78754]

Is it okay to never water the orchids such as Phalaenopsis and Cattleya, but supply them with over 90% humidity everyday?

Since they have aerial roots and can absorb humidity pretty well, I wonder whether they will do well with just humidity alone? Two of my Phals have new roots and I have never watered the new roots and they are doing quite well. I do have a Vick's ultrasonic humidifier that is turned on 12 hours a night and every morning the orchid room has a relative humidity of 90 to 98% and the windows have water condensation.

Has anyone tried not watering the orchids for an extended period while the roots are actively growing? Will they do well with just high humidity alone?

[katrina]

In nature they are rained on so they do need the water. Even at 90+% humidity it's not going to be enough to keep a phal from becoming dehydrated over an extended period of time.

BTW -- I wouldn't want 90+% humidity in my house for a sustained period...it's asking for mold issues.

[Ron]

Hi, I would drop the humidity especially at night down to around 70% unless fresh air or good circulation is supplied to avoid mould and fungal problems
Day time in summer about the same and good air circulation.

I would water them and let them nearly dry out between watering.
The reason why they have aerial roots is the medium the roots are in is too dry so they send out and up aerial roots to absorb the misture in the mist.
Plus you need to feed them regulary in the growing season, so watering the plants potting mix + fertilizer at the same time makes sense
Best of luck growing them

[Jlie]

That sounds almost like vase culture, but even with vase culture you have to soak your plants every now and then. (My various Neos are in a modified vase culture with activated roots and all, they like it, but they're a lot 'drier' than Phals)

I tool around w/ watering methods too. One of the funnier things I tried was a modified vase culture, it had a reservoir of water at the bottom into which I added an air stone (aerator). The vase kept things humid and splashes from the bubbles would hit the orchid's roots. Voila, watered. It was a fun set up, but stayed too wet so I dismantled it.

Originally Posted by wu78754

Is it okay to never water the orchids such as Phalaenopsis and Cattleya, but supply them with over 90% humidity everyday?

Since they have aerial roots and can absorb humidity pretty well, I wonder whether they will do well with just humidity alone? Two of my Phals have new roots and I have never watered the new roots and they are doing quite well. I do have a Vick's ultrasonic humidifier that is turned on 12 hours a night and every morning the orchid room has a relative humidity of 90 to 98% and the windows have water condensation.

Has anyone tried not watering the orchids for an extended period while the roots are actively growing? Will they do well with just high humidity alone?

[orchids4me]

I agree. That kind of humidity in a home will curl wall paper and peel paint and yes the mold ... Like Katrina said in nature they do get rain even with humidity so they still need water.
70% is a good range as Ron stated. I try to achive this # daily in my space I'm lucky to get 60 to 67 on a non water day but water day it peaks up in the 70's
Good luck

[Ray]

Aerial roots "absorbing" humidity to keep the plant watered is a myth. Super-high humidity will certainly slow the desiccation rate, but will never reverse it.

[FLBob]

High humidity will not provide the plant the salts and minerals that are needed for proper cell development. Minus the presents of mycorrhizal fungi in the roots, only the nutrients that are dissolved in water can enter the plant. The high humidity will only slow the process of water loss, not replenish the water.

[skipper]

I am a retired painting contractor, and I can tell you, you do not want 90% humidity in your home. The problems that you will have are not good. I think that this issue is one that we will all agree on. Watering your plants is part of the fun.

Dale

[wu78754]

Many thanks to all the replies. Yes, too much humidity is a problem to everything else in the house.