Bottom heaters?

[vcuchick]

I'm curious to hear others' opinions on a bottom heating pad...I've heard about them but I'm curious to know more and/or folks' experiences with one? Do they really help plants "transition" better or grow "happy?" I've read Ray's culture sheet info on them (thanks Ray! Welcome to First Rays Orchids) but I curious about the practicality of them and what others think... What has been your success?

[Brooke]

The only time I have used the plant heating pad for orchids is when I deflasked some lycaste seedlings this past December. We were having very little sun and the g/h temps were running 60 day and night. I don't know if it helped or not but it didn't kill them.

I've always used the heating pad when I started seeds inside because my grow area inside was quite cool. Once the seeds were up, the grow lights heated the seedlings to an adequate temperature for growth.

If I lived in a "normal" house with normal temps, I don't think I would invest any money in buying a heating pad and the thermostat to operate it - the pad is cheap but the thermostat is not.

Brooke

[mehitabel]

I have a seedling heat mat that I have used occasionally when re-rooting orchids that had lost all their roots. It keeps them toasty, especially if you have lights on them. In fact it can get too warm with lights + mat.

I also thought about trying some warm-lovers on it during the winter. But in the end I didn't bother, and the warm lovers wintered just fine indoors under lights.

Mostly, I don't think it's worth the trouble for any normal plant-- watering is messy, etc etc.

[vcuchick]

thanks!