Wow! Thank you! I am printing all of this out -- Welcome to Orchids, etc.

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Date Posted: 22:22:48 10/26/00 Thu
Author: Anonymous
Subject: Wow! Thank you! I am printing all of this out
In reply to: Anonymous 's message, "Humidity and Air Movement....." on 17:56:26 10/26/00 Thu

I truly love these flowers, and with all this information, just maybe I have a chance to grow some that I won't kill! Thank you for all your hard work and effort, I promise to try to follow your instructions, so it won't be a waste.

> HUMIDITY
>
>
>
> - - HUMIDITY - -
>
> Humidity is moisture that is
> suspended in the air. The
> temperature of the air determines
> how much moisture it can
> hold. Warm air holds more moisture
> than cool air, so as the
> temperature rises, the percentage of
> moisture in the air
> decreases. Because of this, more
> moisture needs to be added
> to maintain the desired level of
> humidity. When the air
> temperature cools, the air gives up
> its moisture in the form
> of rain (or snow if the air is cold
> enough). Here is a bit of
> trivia for you: The driest air on
> the planet can be found not
> in the Sahara Desert, but at the
> South Pole. Humidity can
> be measured using a simple
> instrument called a hygrometer.
> You should be able to purchase a
> hygrometer at any large
> garden center.
>
> Orchids lose water through pores
> (stomata) found on their
> leaves. The drier the air, the
> faster the orchid will loose its
> moisture. Keeping the humidity high
> reduces the speed of
> water loss (dehydration). Orchids
> prefer a location where
> there is a range of humidity between
> 40% and 70%.
>
> You should not try and keep your
> humidity at the same
> percentage all the time. A
> fluctuation of humidity is desirable
> and gives the plants a chance to
> "dry out." A 40% drop
> during the day for short periods can
> be beneficial to your
> orchids.
>
>
> - - CONTROLLING HUMIDITY - -
>
> Raising
> humidity
>
> In a greenhouse, you can wet
> down the walks and floors
> to increase the humidity.
>
> In your home, a humidity tray
> works very well. A
> humidity tray is any kind of
> shallow container that will
> hold water. Just add some
> pebbles and water. Place the
> orchid above the tray making
> sure the pot does not
> touch the gravel. You can also
> increase the water
> evaporation from the tray by
> adding a heating cable
> (sold for germination of seeds)
> under the gravel. For
> more information about humidity
> trays, please read my
> Frequently Asked Questions
> page.
>
> Group your plants together as
> much as you can, but not
> so close that it prevents free
> air movement around each
> plant. The grouped plants will
> assist each other in
> forming their own beneficial
> micro-climate cause by their
> own evaporation.
>
> Humidifiers work very well.
> There are many types and
> many prices. You will have to
> see what your budget can
> afford and then check out the
> various types available in
> your area. Before investing in
> a humidifier, however, you
> should first invest in a
> hygrometer to see if you really
> need one.
>
> If possible, grow your orchids
> in the kitchen by the
> sink, in the bathroom, the wash
> room, or anywhere hot
> water is used. The evaporation
> of the water adds
> moisture to the air.
>
> If the air is extra dry, you
> can enclose the orchid in a
> plastic "tent". The plastic
> cover acts like a miniature
> greenhouse. Don't make your
> enclosure air tight, and do
> not expose your orchid to
> direct sun light when it is
> enclosed in a tent.
>
> Make sure your furnace and air
> conditioning units are not
> blowing hot or cold air
> directly on your orchids.
>
> Misting does little for raising
> the humidity. The water in
> the air quickly evaporates. If
> you insist on misting be
> sure and do it early in the day
> so that any moisture on
> the plants leaves will be dry
> by evening.
>
> Lowering
> Humidity
>
> Excessive humidity is rarely a
> problem for orchids grown in
> the home. High humidity is usually
> more prominent in a
> greenhouse because of the
> greenhouse's sealed environment.
> This is especially true if you live
> in an area where the climate
> is damp or in and area where winters
> are dull and cloudy most
> of the time.
>
> A sign of excessive humidity or damp
> stagnant air is the
> formation of brown water spots on
> the leaves, small pink or
> brown spots on the blooms, and the
> flower sheaths turning
> black (in extreme cases).
>
> To correct the problem, you need to
> increase the air
> movement with fans to dry out the
> area. Vent the area to
> the outside if the humidity outside
> is lower than inside. Be
> careful not to introduce hot or cold
> drafts on your orchids
> while venting. Decrease watering if
> possible and DON'T mist.
> AIR MOVEMENT
> AND
> AIR QUALITY
>
>
>
> - - AIR MOVEMENT - -
>
> Orchids do not like stagnant air. In
> their natural habitat,
> most orchids grow high up in trees
> where the breezes are
> always blowing. Wind cools the
> leaves when it is hot, and
> helps dry excess moisture that may
> have accumulated on the
> plant. Wind also helps distribute
> warm and cold air so harmful
> air pockets don't form.
>
> Because most greenhouses are very
> air tight, the need for
> mechanical ventilation is a must.
> Many greenhouses have roof
> and/or side vents that can be opened
> to vent hot air out and
> let cooler air in. Some of the side
> vents may also be equipped
> with electric fans. When the
> temperature reaches a preset
> level, the fans turn on and exhaust
> hot air to the outside.
> This not only helps cool the
> greenhouse but also replaces
> stagnant air with fresh air. You may
> also install a simple duct
> system consisting of a large plastic
> tube that has vent holes
> cut into it every two or three feet.
> A small blower at one
> end of the tube blows air through
> the tube and out the vent
> holes. This keeps the air moving in
> the greenhouse. If the
> roof of your greenhouse is tall
> enough, ceiling fans also work
> very well.
>
> In your home, the easiest way to
> create air movement is to
> open a window. Be careful of drafts
> because they can be
> harmful. A draft of cold air can
> cause buds to drop. If a
> window can't be opened, use small
> fans directed away from
> your orchids to circulate the air in
> the room (ceiling fans
> work GREAT).
>
>
> - - AIR QUALITY - -
>
> Your orchids, like people, need
> plenty of clean fresh air.
>
> In the home, accumulated air
> pollutants from pilot lights,
> smoking, cooking, aerosol sprays,
> plastic and other synthetic
> materials, people, and other sources
> can all be harmful to
> your plants. To reduce the amount of
> pollution in your home,
> open a window to let fresh air in
> (of course, you don't want
> to open your widows if it is
> extremely smoggy outside because
> you may be letting more pollutants
> into your home than you
> are trying to remove). Electrostatic
> air cleaners will remove
> dust, dirt, and some other
> pollutants from the air, but are
> useless in removing unwanted gases.
>
> You should never smoke around your
> orchids (they might pick
> up the nasty habit the next thing
> you know, they will demand
> to be watered with Jim Beam and
> start hanging out with
> questionable Dandelions--ok, just
> kidding). If you do smoke,
> be sure you wash your hands before
> handling your orchids to
> prevent spreading a deadly virus
> called Tobacco Mosaic Virus
> from your nasty cigarettes to your
> beautiful orchids.
>
> Ethylene gas can cause the orchid's
> sepal to wilt--especially
> in the Cattleya genus which can be
> effected by as little as
> one part of ethylene gas to
> 300,000,000 parts of air.
> Ethylene gas is produced from
> incomplete combustion of
> petroleum products (coal, natural
> gas, gasoline, oil etc.) as
> well as being produced naturally by
> some fruits such as
> apples. A basket of apples can
> generate enough ethylene gas
> to cause your flowers to wilt and
> turn black. In a
> greenhouse, smog, if brought inside
> through ventilation, is
> very harmful to the blooms because
> ethylene gas is also
> present in smog. If you live in a
> very smoggy area you may
> want to keep your windows closed on
> the days of high air
> pollution. Non-electric (gas,
> propane, etc.) heaters used in
> greenhouses should be vented to the
> outside.
>
> NOTE:
> If your orchid blooms suddenly wilt,
> it may not be due to bad
> air. If the bloom suddenly fades and
> the petals fold together
> and turn papery, an insect may have
> pollinated the blooms.
> Look to see if there is pollinia on
> the stigma.

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