Eggshells are viable sources of calcium and potassium and can be used as fertilizer. Don’t throw away eggshells, wash and collect them until you get 20 – 25 eggshells. Crush it with a mortar and let it boil in a gallon of water. Let it soak for about 8 hours. Filter out the eggshells and keep the water in a container. You can use it to water your orchids on a weekly basis.
Dried and crushed
chicken bones are other good kitchen stuff useful as calcium and potassium source. Again, do not throw away chicken bones, but wash them and spread them out in the sun to dry or dry them in an oven. Crush the dried bones thoroughly and keep it in a jar. Sprinkle the dusty bones onto the potting medium on a monthly basis.
Rice water is a good source of vitamin, vitamin B in particular. What I mean by rice water is the water that is used to wash the rice prior to cooking as well as the water in which the rice is cooked. You can directly use it to water your orchid. But make sure that you cool down the cooked water first.
Tea contains non-toxic organic materials and is rich in nitrogen which is good for your orchids. Hence you can make use of teabags. Just open the teabag and pour the tea onto the potting media once a month.
Milk can be the source of protein, thus provide high content of nitrogen. You can make use of a milk bottle or carton which has just been emptied. Fill it with water and shake it well so that the milk residue will be diluted in the water. Use this to water your orchid.
Fallen oak leaves are naturally a good source for fertilizer. And since they are completely natural, there is no need to worry about the negative effects of chemical fertilizers. Collect dry leaves and put it in a 5 gallon container. Fill it with about 2 gallons of water. The portion should be 1/3 water and 2/3 of the leaves. Get it exposed to sunshine for about a week or until the water shows an ice-tea color. If you couldn’t get the ice-tea color after a week, pour it with warm water and let it cool down. You can then use it to water your orchid on a 2-week basis.
Potatoes are another practical source of calcium and potassium. Cut an unpeeled potato into small dices and let it boil for a few minutes. To provide more potassium, you can add fresh banana cuts into the boiling potato mixture and stir it well. Let it cool down and keep the mixture in jar. Add this mixture to the potting media on a 2-week basis.
Last but not least a kitchen stuff to be considered as fertilizer is
molasses as a source of potassium. Just take a teaspoon of molasses to be diluted in the water you are going to use for watering your orchid.
Epsom salt is a good source of magnesium.
Mix 1 tbsp.
apple cider vinegar with a gallon of water. Use the mixture every time you water to quickly revitalize a slow-growing plant.
USING LEMON JUICE TO REMOVE WATER SPOTS, CLEAN & SHINE YOUR ORCHID LEAVES
If your orchid has water-spotted or dirty leaves, you can use lemon juice to clean the leaves. The white, crusty water spots are usually caused by hard water or excessive fertilizer.
To clean your plants leaves, get a real lemon (some people will use the bottled lemon juice with the same success, although I think fresh lemon juice works better), cut it in half and get a clean new paper towel. You do not have to dilute the lemon juice, full strength is fine!
Squeeze some lemon juice (it's okay if there are seeds) onto a clean paper towel and use the paper towel to gently wipe/scrub the tops of the leaves. Try it! It really works!
DO NOT CLEAN THE UNDERSIDE OF THE LEAVES - ONLY THE TOPS! The undersides are where the plant breathes and you don't want to accidentally rub anything into these breathing holes (called stomata).
Use a new paper towel for each orchid. The lemon juice will help dissolve thos calcium hard water spots, will clean the leaves and leave them bright and shiny! The lemon juice will not harm the orchid.
As an alternative, some people use Mayonaise, Milk (esp buttermilk) and other natural substances such as Neem Oil or horticultural oil to clean/polish the leaves of their orchid.
Note that some orchids will "shine up" better than others - usually Phalaenopsis or Moth orchids shine up well, while Cattleyas may not as much.
USING CINNAMON SPICE (POWDER) TO STOP FUNGAL & BACTERIAL ROT & TO HEAL WOUNDS
Orchids that are experiencing crown root rot (most common on phalaenopsis or moth orhcids where the upper leaves turn yellow or brown and fall off - or when more than one leaf turns yellow or multiple leaves fall off the plant - this is a result of overwatering, dead roots or allowing water to sit in the crown of the plant) can usually be stopped in its tracks with Cinnamon.
Yes, cinnamon - the spice you put in your cinnamon rolls that you'll find a handy bottle of in almost every kitchen.
Cinnamon comes from several types of trees and it often has anti-microbial (anti-biotic anti bacterial and anit-fungal properties).
To stop rot, simply spring cinnamon into the top crown of the plant and all around. You can also use it to treat leaf edges that you cut away dead material and on common black and brown spots on the leaves (either bacterial or fungal infections or sunburn).
If you are repotting and there are lots of dead roots, you may also wish to sprinkle some cinnamon on the roots before repotting (you may also want to use hydrogen peroxide... see below).
The cinnamon will help dry up the infections!
Home Products as Fertlizers, your insights please.
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