Orchids are one of the plants that many people love to grow as an ornamental in the home or office. Orchids bring the fragile and pure beauty of nature. So there are more and more different species of orchids and a variety of colors for everyone to choose from.
Orchids are plants that love low-pressure and humid environments in nature. Therefore, many people often wonder about the ideal humidity for orchids to grow best. In particular, misting for orchids is the issue that many people are most concerned about in recent times. Do orchids like to be misted? How to mist orchids to achieve the best effect. Will orchids have problems if you mist them too much? We will help you answer the detailed information in the article below.
Should I Mist My Orchids?
Most orchids will grow and thrive if the humidity in the environment is between 40% and 70%. This plant will experience some health problems if the humidity in the air is low. Some problems like rolled leaves, deformed shoots, yellowing or falling leaves, and stunted plant growth. Therefore, maintaining the ideal humidity for orchids is one of the important factors to ensure plant health.
You can mist your orchids to increase the humidity of the plants on days of high temperature and low humidity. However, proper misting is the most important factor in maintaining health and avoiding fungal and disease problems. Here are some reasons you should mist your orchids to maintain plant health.
Maintain The Ideal Humidity For Orchids
On days when the temperature is high and the humidity in the air is low, you can use a mist sprayer to increase the humidity of your orchids. Water droplets in the form of dew will quickly adhere to the surface of the leaves and increase humidity. So the leaves of the orchid will not dry out excessively or curl due to lack of moisture.
Misting is not a method of long-term moisture retention for orchids and other plants. However, it can help maintain moisture temporarily during peak times of the day. Especially during periods of heat or prolonged drought.
Mist Instead Of Watering Directly
You may not know, the leaves and roots of orchids are very easy to absorb water directly from the air in a humid environment. In the natural environment, orchids often live parasitic on an old tree. Therefore, they are easy to absorb water from the air or the surface of old trees.
Orchids are easy to absorb water after rain or air in the form of dew. When these plants cling to old trees, their root systems have no soil to hold water. So, to survive in the wild, orchids absorb water very quickly. Thanks to the mechanism of opening the stomata on the underside of the leaves, orchids can quickly absorb rainwater. Therefore, you can spray mist to stimulate the orchid’s water absorption mechanism like in the natural environment.
The Harm Of Misting Orchids Improperly
Misting can be of great benefit in terms of maintaining moisture in the air for orchids. However, improper misting can also cause many serious health problems in plants. Here are some of the reasons why misting the wrong way can affect the health of your plants.
The Appearance Of Fungal Spots On Flowers And Leaves
Orchids are one of those flowers that have pure beauty and make many people fall in love. Orchids can also last for a long time and still maintain their beauty. Fungal spots can appear on flowers due to tiny water droplets from misting.
Tiny water droplets that stay on the petals for too long in a humid environment will create favorable conditions for the growth of fungi. Airborne fungal spores will quickly attach to leaves and flowers in humid environments. They multiply rapidly and attack the cells of flowers and leaves. So yellow or brown spots will begin to appear and spread to other flowers and leaves.
Increased Risk Of Top Rot Of Orchids
The condition of the tops of orchids rot is not a rare problem. When the top of the orchid is rotten, the whole plant will be affected and gradually die. If you regularly mist orchids, these tiny drops of water will stay at the tops or slits between the leaves. In humid conditions and lack of sunlight, water vapor will evaporate very slowly. Therefore, the tops and young leaves will be exposed to water for a long time. The risk of rotten orchid tops and leaves is greatly increased. Too much water will make the leaves and tops too wet, and bacteria will attack and cause root rot.
Misting Increases The Risk Of Fungal Diseases
If you missed it too much and improperly, it can kill the orchid in a short time. Humid environments, especially at night, are the most ideal conditions for fungi to grow and attack plants. Fungal spores are always present in the air and they are effective when a humid environment is present.
Besides, too much watering makes orchids waterlogged is also the cause of root rot. Orchids will droop, leaves swell from a lot of water and then they will rot. This is because harmful fungi and bacteria will attack plants when they become weak from root rot.
Misting Instead Of Watering Increases Fungal Diseases
Orchids are very easy to absorb water through the leaves in the form of mist, but you should not abuse this form. The best watering method that you should apply is to water the orchid’s base. The root system of orchids will better absorb water and keep water longer throughout the plant’s cells.
If you mist or water it, the orchid’s root system will not be able to develop properly due to the lack of water in the soil. Since then, they cannot supply water and nutrients to the entire plant as the normal mechanism of action. So you only need to water a small amount of water for your orchid pot and it can use water for 1-2 weeks.
Improper Misting Can Cause Orchids To Lose Water
Misting at the wrong time and in the right way can be harmful to orchids. The reason is that when you mist, the humidity increases suddenly, and the stomata under the leaf surface are opened to absorb water. When the stomata are fully opened and they need to receive a large amount of water to stretch the cells. If you only mist with a small amount of water then it is not enough for the cells to absorb the water. Meanwhile, the stomata have opened all the way, so not only do they not receive enough water, but the water in the cells also escapes back out. From there, orchids can become dehydrated if you mist them incorrectly.
Use Misting To Fertilize Through Leaves
Many people think that orchids are easy to absorb water from misting, so they add fertilizer to the spray bottle to foliate orchids. This action will not affect the health of the orchid much. However, it is not an effective way to fertilize and promote plant health.
There are many common reasons that you shouldn’t fertilize orchids through misting. The root system can fully absorb nutrients and transport them to the entire leaves and flowers in the most reasonable way. This normal mechanism of action ensures that the entire plant cell can receive adequate water and nutrients. If you use misting to fertilize it will create unevenness between parts and cells.
Besides, orchids are plants that do not need too much fertilizer. So you only need to fertilize them periodically to ensure the health of the plants. In particular, fertilizing through misting will lead to the accumulation of salts and nutrients on leaves and flowers. So it will create a coating to prevent the orchid’s photosynthesis and sun exposure.
How To Properly Mist Orchids
Misting brings many health benefits to orchids, especially this method helps quickly solve the lack of moisture in the air. However, improper and frequent misting will also cause serious health problems for orchids.
- You should not mist the plants at night because the moisture will not be able to evaporate but will stay on the leaves. Fungi and bacteria will quickly grow in humid environments.
- You can mist several times a day but don’t spray too much.
- Wipe the leaf tips and interstitial leaves after misting to avoid standing water for too long, which can lead to top rot.
- If you add fertilizer to your mist sprayer, you should regularly wipe off the foliar coatings. It could be excess salt on the leaves.
- The mist should not be sprayed on humid days because the humidity in the air is too wet, creating favorable conditions for harmful fungi and bacteria to grow.
- Do not use tap water for misting as tap water may contain excess salts or chemicals.
- Before you mist, clean both sides of the leaves to avoid a humid environment that is ideal for the eggs of pests to thrive.
- You should only mist while the orchid has wilted due to lack of water or extreme heat during peak times of the day.
- Spray enough water so that the orchid can absorb enough for the cells. Avoid misting too little, causing the stomata to open completely and drain water back to the outside environment.
- Clean the sprayer regularly to keep the mist clean because moss or other harmful substances can linger in the sprayer if you don’t change the water regularly.
How To Maintain The Ideal Humidity For Orchids
Misting is only a temporary method to help orchids absorb moisture in emergencies. Misting also cannot replace conventional watering methods or maintain moisture for long periods. So, there are a few things you can do to provide the ideal humidity for your orchids.
Use A Humidifier
A humidifier is the most ideal method to increase or decrease the humidity in your room. The humidifier will work automatically and effectively to control indoor humidity. When in winter, dry temperatures, or the impact of a heater, the humidity can be lower than usual. Therefore, a humidifier is the most ideal choice to maintain humidity in all weather conditions.
Currently, you can use local humidifiers to avoid affecting other plants in the house. A local humidifier will only maintain the humidity in an area that you desire. So your indoor humidity won’t be affected or other low humidity-loving plants.
Use Water Trays Or Aquariums
You can place pots of orchids on trays of water with bets or pebbles below. However, you should not let the bottom of the pot touch the water because it will increase the risk of waterlogging. Make sure that the bottom of the orchid’s pot is always on a gravel or cobblestone surface.
The root system will not be in direct contact with the water, but the moisture that rises from the water will also provide moisture to the orchid. You should also regularly clean and change the water in the tray because algae, moss, or harmful bacteria can exist in the water tray. In addition, you can also place a pot of orchids next to the aquarium to take advantage of the moisture from the aquarium to the environment.
Place Pots Of Orchids Next To Each Other
You can group pots of orchids or other houseplants in the same area. Therefore, humidity can be improved during the process of plant species absorbing moisture and evaporating it into the environment. This alternate evaporation process will provide the necessary moisture for the other potted plants.
However, you should place the potted plants in well-ventilated areas and a reasonable distance. Avoid letting the branches of the pots collide with each other and spread fungal or insect diseases. Immediately isolate a potted plant if it shows signs of fungal diseases.
Humidity Combined With Ventilation
If you use methods to increase humidity in your home, you should pay attention to ventilation. High humidity should be combined with ventilation to avoid stagnant air in an enclosed space. Stagnant air in a high-humidity environment will stimulate the growth of fungi and bacteria that are harmful to orchids.
That’s why indoor orchids are often more susceptible to disease than orchids in the wild. Stagnant air is more common in winter than in summer. The reason is that you will be open more in the summer than in the winter. Therefore, you need to pay attention to the factors of humidity and ventilation to maintain the best health for orchids.
Questions Related To Humidity And Orchids
Humidity is very important when growing orchids, so maintaining the ideal humidity is important for successful orchid growing. Each type of orchid can survive in different levels of humidity, but they still need to maintain a constant humidity of 40% to 70%. Here are some common questions regarding orchids and humidity.
Should I Grow Orchids In The Bathroom?
In every house, the bathroom is the area with the best humidity because there is always steam maintained there. Theoretically, you can completely grow orchids in the bathroom because it will provide enough moisture and steam for the orchids. However, the bathroom is usually a private and secluded place, so it often doesn’t have large windows to let in sunlight and good air circulation.
Therefore, you should not plant orchids in cramped bathrooms that lack air circulation. If you have a spacious bathroom with windows and good ventilation, you can still grow orchids. The reason is that if the bathroom is too tight and lacks air circulation, fungal diseases are easy to multiply and develop. Especially, in winter when you use hot water to take a bath, the steam that rises can be hot, so it is also not good for the health of orchids.
Can I Plant Orchids In The Summer?
You can grow orchids in the summer as long as you provide them with enough water and moisture. If the summer in your area is not too high and the humidity is moderate, you can still grow orchids. You should place orchid pots in sheltered areas or avoid direct sunlight for many hours.
A location one meter away from the window and covered with curtains will be an ideal place to grow orchids in the summer. Water continuously when the surface of the orchid pot is 1-2 inches dry to provide enough water for the orchid. On days when the temperature is too high or the drought is prolonged, you should place the orchid pot in shady areas to avoid burning leaves and flowers.
Summary
Misting can maintain the ideal humidity for orchids to grow and develop well. Orchids are plants that love warm and humid environments. However, misting provides only temporary benefits as a temporary method of refreshment for plants. It cannot replace the conventional method of watering the soil.
Therefore, to achieve the effect you need to spray the mist at the right time and in the right way. If you missed it incorrectly it will cause many serious health problems for your orchids such as fungus and pests, top rot, leaf rot, salt build-up on surfaces, or evaporating water back to the outside. the stomata were maximally opened.