coconut husks

[Piper]

Snort! She doesn't mean me...

Julie

[Hoa Tony Nguyen]

Tanya is very correct. Dendrobiums love lot of light and a few hours of light might not be enough, especially for the ones that you are growing. Why don't you experiment a bit by moving some plants to a brighter location or a spot where they get more hours of light and see what response you get after a few months?
Cheers. Hoa.

[WolfinKW]

about the water collecting plates... it would be best to not use them however if you need to for either of two reasons it's really simple just put either marbles or river rock or what ever in them so that the pot isn't sitting directly in the water. This way they collect the water so as not to damage furniture AND they become humidity trays so that if you are in a very dry area your plants are happy. I am using some on a few of mine and they are very happy orchids. One is in spike and getting ready to bloom it looks similar to the one in the picture with the spade shaped leaves but mine has to be a giant version the plant stalk on mine is about 2 inches around at the base and if it hadn't gotten broken in the last hurricane we had in key west would have easily been 4 feet tall by now.

[Tanya]

The benches are specially made for the orchids and now there is not enough sunlight to grow them. What type of orchid would be okay? This area could also get so wet during rainy season. sniff sniff

The type of orchid you can grow on that bench,(if you can't move to a sunnier location) are Paphis and Phalaenopsis. But Paphs don't like being rained on too much and so are Phals......not the kind of rain you get in PI. If you got the resources, you could build a clear roof above it or something similar.

[ewbie]

Actually, I got the clear roof to put on top in preparation for the rainy season. Just arrived and to be installed soon. This morning I observed the area and it only gets 30 minutes of sunlight! The 1st picture is at 8am then the second one is after 30 minutes until it settles (3rd pic) on the corner pot. The 4th picture is my whole garden. If am standing in front of the palm tree, the sun is at NW.

[ewbie]

Tanya, you're so right about that yellow leaf! They are red mites. Ugh! It's been raining last month. I thought too much water causes the yellow leaf and dropping of it. I keep on adjusting my watering. May I ask what causes red mites? How can I prevent it? Btw, when I water my plants, I only water the medium. Do I also spray on the leaves?
Thank you so much to everyone! You are all so helpful!

[orchid-man]

a good way to stop red mite is spray the foliage as they dislike humidity.
I have not sprayed any of my plants with an insecticed for over 4 months now,mind you for the cooler growing plants I mist for two minuites 4 times per day starting at 6am and the last at 6pm.The other plants get misted upto 4 times per day depending on the temerature.With this misting I only water once a week and that is when I fertilize.The foliage also gets the feeding as well

[Tanya]

Move one bench to the right, just below the railings for your Dendrobiums. They will be happier with the Vanda. Your garden is too shady for growing Dendrobiums and Vandas.

I don't exactly know what causes spider mites. I am fighting my own battle with them. I use alcohol and some detergent mix with water to wash the leaves of my plants. In some cases, I just use plain alcohol and rinse with plain water afterwards. Its also good for the Dendro if you give them a good shower every time you water.

[Rence]

hi diane and to everyone!
i am attaching a pic of my dendrob with coconut husk potting. i find it kind of dirty but am afraid to repot it since am still new with gardening and also am still waiting to rebloom under my care i see this is the normal potting with dendrob and phal in nurseries here. but i envy when i see the pic attachment in this forum with so neat container and no roots coming out from it or no algae
well, just got these plants last june or july so am not sure if i have the green thumb. any advise?
Attachment 2557

Attachment 2558 i wonder what the tiny white spots on the left leaf mean?

Attachment 2559 i wonder why after cleaning the leaves the yellow spot came out the next day?

Welcome to this form!
Hi nice meeting you, Coconut husk is a favorite media for most Philippine orchid growers, the media is light, cheap and favorable to the orchids but due to the Philippine weather it does not last long 2 years may be the maximum time! you may do some repotting and try to mount your dendrobium in Kakawate or any driftwood

[ewbie]

My orchids is infected with red mites. I wiped the leaves with alcohol-water solution. When should I make a follow up on it?
I read another treatment somewhere that veggie oil/water solution then follow up with insecticidal soap. Which is better?
Besides, there is the liquid insecticidal soap for animals so it is more convenient to spray than wipe. But is it safe for orchids? I tried to look on the label but it doesn't say. Any suggestion?

thanks