Lighting/Purchasing of Orchids

[Winterwhite]

Good morning all.
I purchased an incandescent light called the Wunderlite. I have it in the bathroom and it lights most of my orchids. Does it matter that all dens, oncidiums, phaps etc are together - all benefiting from the same light?
Secondly, I buy all my orchids from a mail order house. They are unquestionably very nice orchids but can I do as well by buying locally from a nursery or a Home Depot? Keep in mind I am new and would hate to loose an orchid due to my inexperience. I have 14 orchids.
Thirdly, I have three or four orchids that have been reduced to just a few leaves and one spike. Can I nurse these back to health and more leaves? I think I shouldn't have left them outside all summer for bugs etc to get at them.
Fourthly, can I feed my orchids weakly while the spikes and blooms are growing? I think I read somewhere that this was not the time to feed them.
Fifthly, I'm not sure that this makes sense. The mealy bugs seem only to be attracted to phalenopsis. Is there a reason for that?
Thank you for your patience. Winterwhite

[atcrosby]

I am not sure about the lighting as I am just exploring that option for my orchids. I am investigating LED Grow lights and have learned a lot about the red / blue spectrum and chlorophyl. Everything I have seen indicates the distance between the bulb and the plants has to be short so I am wondering if the light is providing much benefit. Perhaps Mike can chime in since he's got grow lights.

As for buying through mail order versus local. I strongly recommend local growers over Home Depot or mail order. I personally have done all of these and the best thus far have been from a local grower. Add the fact you can develop a relationship with the grower and this becomes an instant reference if you start experiencing problems. I have a grower here with a lot of plants and he's taught me a lot thus far.

I must admit that Norman's Orchids and Quarter Acre Orchids have been good to me via mail but avoid 888Orchids.com I buy all my pots and medium online.

Good luck.

[mayres]

Hi Winterwhite -
What Tom says is correct. You will not get enough benefit from your wunderlight to be of any use to the plants unless you have them inches from it. An exception to this (the "inches rule") would be to purchase expensive metal halide or sodium vapor fixtures - often used by hydroponic growers - we're talking $3-400 fixtures here. Our human eyes remarkably adapt to what plants consider very low levels of light (indoor lighting). Just so you have a sense of what one poor home hobbyist is doing - here is a part of my setup for indoor lighting of orchids put together with inexpenisve materials - this works pretty well for the low light plants like phals, paphs, etc. I have these lights on a timer and on for 14-16 hours per day. I did put all my high light level plants outdoors for the summer and just brought them in about three weeks ago. It was my first attempt at this and it can be a challenge aclimating them to outdoors without burning them. I do have everything mixed together this time of year.
A few personal comments regarding sources of plants - I heartily recommend you join a local orchid society as a GREAT way to obtain plants, meet others with similar interests and learn lots about orchids. The local society shows in your area are a great place to get plants as well as at the monthly meetings there are typically raffles, freebies, member plants for sale, etc. There is a HUGE yearly show/sale in New York City every year, but probably smaller ones nearby as well. I believe there are vendors fairly close to where you live that sell only orchids that would be a GREAT place to visit - talk with them - get the personal touch that Tom is speaking of. Some of these vendors also usually sell to other nurseries that sell all kinds of plants - a secondary choice.
If you buy from places like Lowes, Home Depot, Walmart, etc. - my word of caution is get them the day they come in if possible. They are not treated with any TLC like the growers. People in the stores often water them every day or not at all and know nothing about orchids. They fall out of pots because someone pushed them over and the store may just stuff them back in and sell them as if nothing happened (example). Another concern of many is that many of these plants are noid (no tags with the name) plants and you cannot show them at orchid shows if you really get into this hobby. To some degree this is personal preference - some do not care and others would never buy a noid plant. If you don't mind and you get there early - sometimes some VERY nice inexpensive plants can be had (personal experience). If you have Trader Joes in your neighborhood - this can be an EXCELLENT source of inexpensive plants - many of which ARE tagged.
When you talk about loosing leaves on your plants we should probably deal with one plant at a time or at least one type at a time. They all loose leaves eventually as part of their normal life cycle - we can address any you choose and discuss if what you are seeing is normal or abnormal. Most plants CAN be nursed back to health if they in fact are damaged by insects or other issues. Orchids do grow relatively slowly for the most part however, so depending upon the type of plant we are discussing and the amount of damage - in some cases we are talking YEARS on the comeback trail. In some cases, for some people, a better alternative is just to cut bait and start over - depends upon your patience and how valuable the particular plant is to you.
I feed my plants year round blooming or not - but they are all under lights now. If they are in a place not getting a lot of light and not actively growing then the fertilizer will not be of much use.
Ah, those mealies are sure stinkers are they not!? Trust me, they like ALL types of orchids. My problem has been with ants bringing them inside and "farming" them. Arrrrgh. My plan of defense thus far has been to use Terro for the ants and Bayer Rose and Flower systemic (comes ready to use) for the mealies.
Lots of challenges and lots ALWAYS to learn!
Enjoy!
Mike

[Lucinda Brown]

Hi Winterwhite and welcome! You can purchase a good starter book at Home Depot or Lowe's, called 'Complete Guide To Orchids' from Ortho. Not very expensive and it really helped me in the beginning. The internet is a GREAT source also and this site,of course.The book I mentioned has a lighting chart, temperature chart,both day and night temps, and covers all your basics for many types of orchids.Species orchids I had more luck finding out about on the internet and through the vendors I purchased them from. There's a site called 'Camp Lotta Noise' that has care charts for almost any orchid. Good luck! Lucinda

[Debra Campbell]

Hi Tom,
I seen that you are using the LED Lights how well are they working for you? I have been wondering if I should buy them. It looks as if they would work really well for orchids.
I have about 35 orchids,my problem I don't know how many to get and what colors. 2 reds and one blue? I really don't know. I've asked the man I was going to buy them from and he really didn't know what to tell me. That was the reason I didn't buy them at that time. But it is nice to know someone that already has them to see how they are working out for their orchids. Please let me know any information that you have for me.
I really need to get more lighting but didn't know what kind to use. Thanks Debbie

[PhalPal]

I totally agree with Mike above, be careful with Home Depot/Lowe's orchids. They do not have any idea how to take care of them. Walgreens Drugs near me now has orchids for Mother's Day, set out in a very sunny, hot window where a geranium would do well. Wilted, sunburning, spikes drooping, sopping wet : - and not one employee has noticed. If it flowers, it must love SUN! Orchid shows are an amazing place to get plants. Great selection and great prices, too. Mail order can be worthwhile (but expensive) however there is nothing like walking thru a room full or orchids trying to pick one! (okay...so maybe 10..) Trader Joe's is fantastic and the plants don't stay in the store long enough for the employees to kill them. sorry, was that mean???