Fertilizers for a tropical beauty: how to feed an orchid at home?

Orchid - previously only a capricious tropical beauty, and now a resident of window sills in the homes of Russians.

Experienced flower growers start it after a thorough study of the rules of care. Otherwise, it will not bloom (or bloom, no longer picking a color), it will fall ill and die.

One of the main issues that are studied before buying is fertilizing. Is she needed at all to see multi-colored clusters of pink, white, purple buds on the windowsill?

Feeding Features

In wild nature orchid replenishes nutrients during tropical rains. Florists should feed her so that flowering is plentiful and long. How to feed her properly?

• Orchid needs additional nutrition during the period of active and development of the stem, leaves, shoots. They are needed before the first kidney. If she receives the necessary supply of minerals, she will bloom profusely. If the grower goes too far with the dose, the pet will lose the petals.
• When leaf biomass builds up, the orchid needs top dressing with an NPK ratio in favor of nitrogen. As soon as the peduncle appears, it is fed with preparations with a high content of phosphorus and potassium.
• Orchid - a lover of fertilizers with a liquid consistency. There are products on sale in the form of granules, sticks, and tablets, but their dissolution is uneven, and also difficult to control: it is impossible to predict how many nutrients the plant will receive.
• To feed the plant without problems, the substrate must be with the correct acidity - pH = 5.5-6.5. If the acidity is higher, basic macronutrients will not be absorbed. Due to the high content of alkalis, the flower does not receive iron, copper, boron.

  Reference. To determine the acidity, buy indicator paper in a flower shop. It is used after thorough watering of the orchid, placing it in a water infusion of the substrate. This will find out the pH level.

• When the roots of an orchid are actively growing, the application of fertilizers will cause a burn to the young skin. To prevent it, use foliar top dressing. They have less mineral fertilizers. So that they are absorbed quickly, a spray is used when making.
• The vegetation phase and season affect the frequency of top dressing. In the winter months, nutrients are added once a month, and in the remaining months - every two weeks.

You will learn all the details about dressing for orchids in this article.

How and what can be fertilized?

Orchids are gaining strength thanks to specialized mixtures. When buying them, pay attention to the packaging - it should be labeled "For orchids." Other fertilizers are not suitable, because they have a different composition of nutrients. They can have a lot of nitrogen, potassium or phosphorus, and their overabundance is fraught with problems with the vital activity of the plant.

To find out the contents of the above components, they are guided by the letters NPK on the label. The optimal ratio is 4: 6: 6. By introducing them, they stimulate flowering. If it is 4: 3: 3, they seek to build up green mass.

• The more nitrogen, the more likely it is that the plant will have new leaves.
• The more phosphorus, the faster the flower stalks will grow.

Specialized tools

Fertilizers for sale in flower shops:

1. Ideal based on biohumus at the price of 25 rubles / bottle.
2. Liquid humic Garden of Wonders complex.
4. Concentrated drug Rainbow.
5. Vitamin cocktail Oasis for 88 rubles.

The above funds are used for extra- and root dressing. At the same time, they are bred strictly according to the instructions, and a spray bottle is used to replenish stocks of important substances.

Available options

Experienced flower growers insist on the need to fertilize the flower with improvised, rather than purchased means. Reason: They are cheaper than Oasis or Bona Forte.

• They fertilize darling with dung, knowing about the high content of nitrogen in it. They breed him carefully. In liquid form, make it carefully, since any excess dosage causes a burn of the roots.
• There is another way to make manure - adding it to the substrate. It will give out beneficial substances during irrigation. In this case, manure is changed once a year.
• When a woman defrosts meat, blood remains in the cup. It can be used to power the orchid, as it has many useful substances.

Folk methods

For feeding use natural components that are in every home:

• potatoes;
• Black tea;
• eggshell;
• husk from onions;
• wood ash;
• garlic (about feeding garlic water read here).

The main thing is not to overdo it when making: excess organic is harmful to orchids.

The best dressing, if the orchid does not bloom, is prepared from yeast. They increase the activity of microorganisms in the substrate and increase the level of carbon dioxide produced.

1. 10 g of yeast and 1 tbsp are taken per liter of water. l Sahara.
2. After insisting for 2 hours, dilute the resulting solution with water in a ratio of 1 to 5.
3. It remains only to water the beauty.

You can read more about how and how to feed an orchid here, and find out what nutrients and vitamins are necessary for the growth and development of your plant here.

Fertilizer step-by-step instructions

Orchid requires careful care from the flower grower and meaningful fertilizing. You cannot ignore established rules. Are they needed when the plant blooms or builds up green biomass?

During flowering

Experienced flower growers agree that it is better not to feed the orchid during flowering. Acting differently, when nitrogen-containing complexes are introduced, leaves grow actively, and the development of buds is inhibited. For the same reason, the introduction of such mixtures should be stopped 2-3 months before flowering. You will find the tips and recommendations of experienced gardeners about feeding orchids during flowering in this material.

To stimulate it

To stimulate the formation and development of flower buds, the orchid is fed with potash or phosphorus fertilizers. They buy complex and balanced fertilizers in the store, for example, Bona Forte, and feed them an orchid at home. Producer Bon Forte recommends fertilizing from March to October once a week, and from November to February - once a month.

Step-by-step instruction:

1. Before applying fertilizer purchased at the store, the orchid is carefully watered.
2. Correctly dilute the product. In the case of Bona Forte, 5 ml of the drug is added to the root dressing in 1.5 liters of water, and for foliar root take 3 liters and the same amount. When applied, they do not allow waterlogging of the soil and wetting of the flowers.
3. Wait until the water drains, and return the pot with the plant to the windowsill.

Here we talked about how to water a plant so that it blooms.

To strengthen and grow

To strengthen and promote the growth of orchids, buy universal fertilizer "Mr. color - wagon."

1. Before feeding, carefully water the orchid.
2. After watering, the purchased product is bred. The optimal concentration is one cap “Mr. Color - Station Wagon” for three liters of water (the “Dr. FOLI starter” product is diluted according to the instructions and any other too).
3. After the water drains, return the pot with the plant to its original place.

Rules and recommendations:

• Experienced flower growers recommend foliar application in the morning or evening in cloudy weather.
• The processed leaves should not be exposed to sunlight. Otherwise, burns will appear on them due to the remaining drop of moisture.
• Processing is carried out at a temperature of + 17-27 ° C, in a room where there are no drafts.
• Feeding a plant, do not fall on buds and flowers, so as not to break the ovary and not contribute to their falling.

Conclusion

If you take care of the orchid - water and fertilize on time, it pleases with an abundance of buds twice a year. Not observing unspoken rules, they are not surprised at her death. Fertilizers are needed only during growth, to strengthen the root system and to stimulate flowering. When the first buds appear, their application is stopped.

Watch the video: Vanda Orchid Care for Beginners, Watering and Fertilizing Vanda Orchids, Orchid Diva (May 2024).