How to water orchids

How to water orchids is a headache for flower lovers who have just started to raise orchids. First of all, water is an important component of the protoplasm of orchids. The water content of the protoplast of orchid plant is generally more than 80%. If the water content decreases, the life activity will be affected. If the protoplasm loses too much water, it will cause the destruction of the protoplast and lead to the death of the plant.

Secondly, water is the raw material in the metabolic process of orchid plants. Assimilation and alienation in orchid plants require the participation of water molecules, such as photosynthesis, respiration, hydrolysis and so on.

Thirdly, water is the medium of metabolic process of orchid plants. Only when the nutrient elements in the cultivation medium are dissolved in water can they be absorbed by the orchid root system, and various metabolites must be transported to all parts of the orchid plant along with the water.

Fourth, water can keep the orchid plant in its inherent shape. Only when there is a large amount of water in the cells of the orchid plant, can the cell expand, the plant stand upright, and it is easy to accept light and gas exchange. Once the orchid plant loses water, it will wilt.

Fifth, water can regulate the body temperature of orchid plants. Water not only has high vaporization heat and specific heat, but also has high thermal conductivity, which is beneficial for orchid plants to maintain body temperature and emit heat, and to water orchids. One of its important functions is to regulate the body temperature of orchids.

First of all, according to the growing season of orchids. Orchids should be watered more during the growing or budding period, less or no watering during dormancy, more watering during germination, less watering after germination, more watering when flower buds appear, less watering during flowering to prolong flowering period, and stopping watering for several days after flowering. Let it dormant and then water it again.

Secondly, according to the growth of orchids. The orchids with strong growth are watered more, those with poor growth are less watered, the diseased plants are not watered, the orchids that need to be rescued are watered less or less, and the plants in the pot are watered more and less.

Thirdly, according to the moisturizing condition of the cultivation substrate. The water consumption of the matrix with fine particles and strong water retention is slow (such as mountain sawdust, etc.), so it is necessary to reduce the watering times; on the contrary, if the water retention capacity of the matrix with thicker particles is weak (such as fairy soil), it is necessary to increase the watering times.

Fourth, it depends on the texture and size of the bowl. Tile pots with strong permeability should be watered more, purple sand pots and plastic pots with poor permeability should be watered less, small pots are easy to dry, large pots are difficult to dry, and the frequency of watering is also different.

The time to water the orchids

Watering the orchid plant is also scientific in time. Generally speaking, watering in the morning is better.

Generally speaking, when orchids are outdoors in late spring and summer and autumn, it is appropriate to water them in the morning: first, after a night of cooling, the plant temperature in the basin is lower in the morning, and watering will not hurt the seedlings.

Second, it is thoroughly watered in the morning and turned moist in the evening, there is no waterlogging in the empty basin at night, and the air in the basin is ventilated, which is conducive to the breathing and circulation of orchid root and the growth of orchids.

Third, if the water is watered in the evening, the water evaporates slowly at night, which is easy to cause waterlogging, but the basin has been moistened when the transpiration is fast during the day, resulting in the situation of "waterlogging in the basin when it needs to dry and lack of water in the basin when it needs to be moistened".

Fourth, the temperature of the orchid basin is still high in the evening, and sudden cooling with cold water will affect the water absorption of the roots and interfere with the physiological balance; fifth, at the bottom of the night temperature, the cell activity of the orchid plant is weak, and too much water will cause bacteria to multiply and breed snails and slugs. When orchids are indoors in winter and early spring, the watering time is postponed appropriately, and it is better to be watered at about 09:00 or noon after the temperature picks up in the morning.

On the whole, the principle of watering orchids is that it is better to water orchids in the morning, earlier when the temperature is high, and later when the temperature is low.

The amount of water for orchids

"watering thoroughly" is a measure of the amount of watering of orchids. What is "thoroughly watered"? The standard of "pouring thoroughly" is not only to make the water flow out of the hole at the bottom of the basin, but also to wet all the plant materials in the basin. Often watering once, although there is water flowing out from the bottom hole, it still can not reach the standard of "penetration". In order to make the plant material in the basin wet thoroughly, it can be fractionally watered or watered by the soaking basin method, for the dry granular plant material, the non-soaking basin cannot be watered through, but the soaking basin method should not be used continuously, and the orchid should be breathed at a certain interval. In addition, in winter and early spring, water consumption should not be too large, moistening is better.

In short, other people's successful watering methods for raising orchids are not necessarily applicable to your orchid garden. The flower buds are dry; the sprouts are wet; the petal flowers are luxuriant and slightly moist; the odd flowers bloom and can be wet.