Say goodbye to the traditional watering can: to hydrate your orchid without drowning it, there is now a simple method using ice cubes placed in the pot. Here is the method.
Caring for orchids is not difficult. However, there is one key factor where many mistakes can be made especially when watering them.
How to water orchids with ice cubes?
The ideal is to water the orchid several times a week in small doses. And this, whatever the species of your orchid: Phalaenopsis (butterfly), Vanda, Cymbidium or even the popular Cattleya dowiana from Costa Rica. To save time, the popular drip watering or watering with ice cubes can solve this problem.
A few cubes of ice cubes are placed on the substrate, then allowed to thaw naturally. The water thus gradually infiltrates into the substrate and ensures an optimal water supply for the roots (without the risk of overwatering, of course). However, some growers claim that freezing water shock may not be good for orchids. So what is the real story? Recent studies will help clarify this problem.
Using Ice Cubes Makes Care Easier
Experts decided to examine the entire process in a study. They compared a group of orchids watered using this icy watering solution with those where growers made do with a conventional container and water.
They found that ice cubes did not reduce the amount of water supplied to the plants, quite the contrary. The ice cubes allowed the orchid to be perfectly hydrated, and at the same time it was never damaged by waterlogging.
The study was conducted with butterfly orchids, but it is highly likely that other tropical orchids thrive in the same way. Three ice cubes were used per plant. These should not come into contact with the leaves. The temperature of the substrate only dropped a few degrees due to the cold water, which did not harm the roots. The defrosting itself then took place relatively quickly. As soon as the roots turned yellow and not green, the orchids were watered.
The right substrate for orchids
The substrate should only contain ingredients such as:
The substrate of an orchid plays an essential role in its growth. It should only contain ingredients such as:
- A bag of peat
- Beech leaves cut
- Fern roots (pieces of approximately 3 cm)
- Fir, oak or pine bark
You can also use perlite, coir, cork or coarse gravel. Orchids also need a bright location with temperatures around 20 degrees Celsius, liquid fertilizer, ideally every three to four weeks during the growing period, and repotting into a new substrate after two years. If you follow these rules, you will have beautiful and healthy plants that will flower quickly.
How to water houseplants with ice cubes?
For other indoor plants hat are difficult to water, such as bonsai, watering with ice cubes did not harm them. However, for plants that need a lot of water, this tip is unlikely to be effective.
Take out the Orchids
Outdoors, in summer, orchids can easily benefit from the temperature differences which are necessary for them to flower again. Place them in the shade of a tree with light foliage. The ideal is to place them in baskets hanging from its branches, a bit like they are in nature. Water the base of their leaves with a watering wand set to a very fine spray. Outdoor watering is done depending on the weather: every 2 or 3 days when it is hot; once a week, or even fortnightly if the weather is gray and humid. Don’t forget after a few minutes to turn the plants upside down in order to drain the water that remains in the hollow of their leaves: it could cause them to rot at the core, especially phalaenopsis.
