Orchid Watering Tips for Beautiful Blooms and Healthy Growth…
To promote the healthy growth of your plants and stimulate their flowering, it is important to respect their growing conditions and provide them with the conditions necessary to thrive. Indeed, some plants are particularly sensitive to hard watering. This is especially true for orchids, which do not tolerate lime well. Find out what you can add to your orchid watering to neutralize lime. The orchid is a perennial plant with evergreen leaves. This tropical plant is prized for its colorful blooms and is easy to care for. It is ideal to decorate your interior or beautify the terrace or balcony. To stimulate its growth and promote flowering, you can add the following to the hard water used for watering.
What can be added to orchid watering to promote healthy growth?
Water quality is very important for your houseplants, especially orchids. If we take the example of the genus Phalaenopsis, also called butterfly orchid, this plant is very sensitive. Limestone does not suit it. The latter is not only harmful to your orchids, but also leaves unsightly whitish deposits on the leaves of your plant. For this reason, it is recommended to water orchids with lime-free spring water, like rainwater, if possible. However, if you can’t collect rainwater, there is another solution to water your plants with filtered, lime-free water. The trick is to add about ten drops of lemon juice to your watering water. This trick neutralizes the lime present in hard tap water. This will allow your orchids to grow and develop healthily. To stimulate the flowering of your orchids, you can also add a liquid fertilizer diluted with the water with which you water your plants. However, be careful not to overfertilize your orchids, as this can have the opposite effect. Adding fertilizer every three or four waterings, especially during the vegetative growth phase, is considered sufficient to promote the growth and flowering of your plants.
How to water orchids successfully?
The orchid is a tropical plant that appreciates moisture. However, excess water could suffocate the plant’s roots and cause it to rot. For this reason, it is recommended that you repot your orchid in a transparent pot. If the appearance of your pot bothers you, you can choose a planter for it. A translucent pot will allow you to periodically check the appearance of the roots to know if your plant needs watering or not. If the color of its roots turns gray, it means that your plant is dehydrated and needs watering. Also check the substrate before watering your orchid. If it is dry, it is time to water it. Another trick is to weigh the pot. If it is heavy, it means that the substrate is already filled with water. Let it dry before you water it again.
The best way to water your orchid is by watering. This technique consists in immersing the pot in a basin of spring water or tap water mixed with a few drops of lemon juice to neutralize the limestone. Make sure that only three quarters of the pot is soaked. Let stand for 10 minutes, then remove the pot from the basin and drain. This way you will rehydrate your plant without damaging it. In fact, watering the orchid from above or soaking the roots in water could promote their rotting and cause your plant to wilt. Note that it is also important to use room temperature water. If the water is cold or still hot, it could cause a temperature shock to your plant and damage its root system. Also remember to spray your orchid from time to time. To do this, use room temperature water that is free of lime and keep your plant away from drafts and heat sources like the radiator. In fact, this tropical plant does not support a dry environment. Note that while your orchid is in bloom, only the leaves should be sprayed, not the flowers.
To make your orchid last long, you can repot it every two to three years. Choose a special orchid soil for this purpose. This consists of a mixture of coconut fiber, charcoal, bark mulch and clay balls, among other things. This substrate will help promote drainage and provide aeration and the nutrients your plant needs. By simply adding a few drops of lemon juice to the hard water used to water orchids, you will neutralize lime scale and promote healthy growth of your plants
