Is leaf shine OK?

[Trisha]

Hi, I'm new to this forum. I have 4 orchids that are doing well (for now), and I'm wondering if it's OK to use leaf shine on the leaves. I use it on all my other house plants and I love it, but I also know that Orchids are not your typical house plant. I would hate to do anything to hurt them. Any opinions would be appreciated.


Thanks

[Orchid_lady]

I don't know about leaf shine, but I do know that milk can be used to clean and shine orchid leaves. You just get a cloth then wet it with a little bit of milk begin cleaning them, and you have nice shiny orchid leaves.

[flaorchidfan]

I have heard that about the milk. Usually good if you use the spray fertilizer or water with minerals in it and it dries on the leaves. Haven't tried it yet though.

i don't use anything myself but others swear by milk or lemon.

[ryan_d_cruz]

whole fat milk diluted with 50% water works great, I spray it on my rose plant to rid it of powdery mildew, works as a leafshine as well, but be careful not to spray it on too heavily, or as the milk dries, the milk particles will form a white layer on the leaves, similar to water stains only thicker.

[Trisha]

Thanks everyone for the tips. I tried the milk thing this morning (2% was all I had). It worked pretty well. I used it staight, not deluted. It cleaned off the dust and gave them a little shine. It's nice to know I can clean the leaves without harming my plants with chemicals. Who knows whats in those areosol cans!



Trisha

[eikon]

i have found mayo works wonders, just be sure to polish it off the leaves with a clean soft cloth

[esmithlp]

Good ole fashioned water and a papertowel is all I ever use. It does take a little "elbow grease" but there are no chemicals what so ever. Milk can be dangerous if you are not careful. Milk can get into the potting mix and form bacteria not to mention any residual left on the leaves could also form bacteria and that could lead into other problems you dont want to deal with. You can use a very small amount of a light detergent soap diluted in water if you have real dingy leaves but if you keep up with it by just using water and a towel that is probably best.

In Liberty,
Eric H. Smith

[mayres]

I've used lemon juice with pretty good success.

[poeteye]

If you've been buzzing around on the search engines you might have seen a header that tells you that Chaotic Exotics is not currently open to the public. The fact is that the original Chaotic Exotics of America is open as always. Only the Canadian group using the same name is not open. Don't be fooled; they are not even an orchid nursery and not affiliated with one another.

[Maba]

You have posted this advertisement on several forums that I read today. This forum actually has a section for advertising; why weren't you considerate enough to put your message in the right place if you want to be taken seriously? Or are you content to act like a spammer?

[poeteye]

Dear Tricia,
Milk with low or no fat is the best. The residue that Ryan saw is from the fat content. It is the fat that gives spoiled milk its odor. Milk itself contains various enzymes that actually act to break apart virus. While a flame is the only sure way to destroy virus, milk has more effect "killing" virus than does bleach (which, of course, you should never put on or near your orchids).