How I poisoned my Orchids....

[@jenniferbarnwell4747]

I’m so sorry. What a helpless feeling to watch that happen over days. I hope as many as possible recover. Thank you telling us about the problems or errors as well as your successes!

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much for your kind words! And so far, non-have died! Woohoooeee :D

[@hillbillyorchids]

Hey hon, I notice dendrobium hate most treatment of any kind. They fuss over most treatments. I hope they all recover for you. Dendrobium hold alot of hope in those leafless canes. Dont give up. They maybe ugly and leafless but should grow new canes. 😊

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

You are right, the Dendrobiums hate all types of spraying. But we do like a challenge now and again, right? :P … Let’s hope that they have that energy in the canes. I did check them, and they all do have good roots!...

[@hillbillyorchids]

@@TheOrchidSaGa Yea that's good! Good roots I'm sure means recovery. It's bad situation. The bugs kill them or you sray kills them. 🤷‍♀️

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

@@hillbillyorchids I will do an update soon. So far, it does look a bit better then I thought.....

[@remaeburney832]

Thank you for showing us your orchid boo boo. I learn through my mistakes. I was making one with my orchids that I discovered just last night! Fortunately, none of my orchids have died, but I'm sure I've kept them from growing their best. Thanks for sharing! 💓

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you for your kind words. It happens to all of us I like to think. It is how we learn but so, so sad when this happens. I hope they will recover! I will do an update soon! :D

[@wandashaw3551]

Hi EJ. I'm so sorry this happened.i have every faith in your orchid care that you will help them recover and get back to their amazing beauty ❤️. Good luck. 😊

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much, I will try my best! :D

[@juliashearer7842]

I am sorry. Thankyou for sharing your experience. I am sure that you will be able to save most if not all of them. ❤

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much! I hope I can safe them. I will do updates :D

[@FreedomRider1982]

Unfortunate indeed ! But thanks for sharing.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

You are welcome!

[@georgiabarth2066]

Yes very sad but go easy on yourself for doing this bc you never thought that this would happen. Just the opposite, you were trying to help your orchids. Like other bad things that happen to us in life, this was a learning experience, although hard to think that right now These orchids will probably recuperate & come back healthy . Thank you for ALL your videos & for taking the time to show us your beautiful collection.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much Georgia, I like to think it happens to the best of us. But still it hurts. And if it hurts like this, it takes me a little bit longer to get into the positive mood again. But now I am there again! :D I learned my lesson…. So far, no plant did die. :D I hope you are doing well!

[@TammyWorley-p8x]

So very sorry to see this. Very discouraging and disheartening. But you have so much knowledge and practical information about orchids I know you and your orchids will bounce back in no time! Maybe you can give the affected ones a nutrition boost of some kind to rejuvinate them? Good luck w resurrecting all of them! 😊😊

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much, they all do well. So far, so good…. I did give them a bit extra kelp to help with the stress.

[@phalaenoman]

Courage! The best is still to come. We all learn from your mistake.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

You are right! Thank you.

[@MilanBabanic]

I've made stupider mistakes, they look promising, much energy left in those bulbs!!! Im sure you will make them better!!! 💜

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much for your kind words. I like to think mistakes happens to all of us. Some might a few more then other though. :P .. But it is how we learn.

[@elzooostland7459]

We all killed atleast some orchids in our care. We never mean to, but it happens. And looking at those orchids, they probably will survive. You live and you learn i guess. I know how much you love and feel responsible for your orchids, so this sucks. But keep your chin up *hug*😊

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

That’s so kind, thank you so much! All these plants do have good roots, so maybe enough energy to push out new growths. We will try or best! :D

[@paige6042]

OMG that TERRIBLE! I got all choked up when I saw your dendrobiums 😢 I’m sorry that happened. I know how hard I would be on myself if that happened. It would take me a while to recover from the grief of that. It’s obvious that you love your chids. You have selflessly given all the rest of us reminder to be cautious. I have no doubts that you’ll get them all to come back. Chin up 😉

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much, you are so kind! So far, they are alive and growing! :D

[@FernandaNascimentoOrchids]

So sorry 😢 It really is heartbreaking but Dendrobium are pretty resistant, especially the nobile types. Even if they don't have the strength to bloom next spring, I hope they start all over again growing new shoots.Thanks for sharing. I once read that oils do not let leaves breath and they should be used with caution with plants in general. Orchids, being for sensitive suffer more. And Dendrobium in particular, they are very fussy, they don't like anything on their leaves. Some of mine got fungus and spider mites. I treated with water and soap but still the leaves don't look as nice as before. Fingers crossed for you, good luck ❤❤❤

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

You are so right! I do use paraffin oil and that seems to work way better! Indeed, it still can leave marks/spots, especially when pests did bite into tissue. The paraffin oil will get into the plants as well, but it will not kill it. And the marks are not as bad as they are now with the tea tree. Never had such a bad outcome after spraying… Thank you so much for your kind words, all the plants have good roots so I hope they will make it! :D

[@Hollywiththeflowers]

Ah no, so sad when we hurt our plants when we were trying so very hard to help them. I have my fingers crossed for you that no more extra leaves will fall now. I have done tbese things to my plants many times. It’s disappointing & sad to see. Good luck going forward. ☀️

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much for your kind words. It is sad indeed… A good lesson but not much fun learning this way… I will try my best to safe them all!

[@rickl.orchids]

Oh EJ....my heart sank when I saw this title.....so very sorry to see this....most of those type oils are acidic, and its like spraying with vinegar.....New or young tissue is more easily burned/effected... The best way to treat spider mites and mealie bugs is spray them with water......in all the years I have had orchids.......Ive never had any issues with spider mites, mealie bugs scale, etc.........never! Mine are outside for months getting rained on.........and then when they go inside.......I spray them with water myself....

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

It was not fun making this video, sorry for the scary title! But this is how we learn as well. Not everything goes well all the time. Because the high humidity it is hard to get my plants dry in time. That is why I spray them, only if needed. I do use paraffin oil with success. I thought let’s try something with a strong smell, so I do not have to spray them again for at least a couple of months. I shouldn't have done that!... Just stick with what does work. But like I said, I only spray if really needed. I do not like spraying my plants for pests/bugs. Thank you so much for your support Rick!

[@eloina17]

THIS^I learned just by spraying with a hose or wiping with the leaf should be enough to keep the mites away or at least give them a harder time to do anything. All my phals had spider mites and them online diy sprays did nothing but you know what did something? Water!

[@loribadgero1035]

Oh no! It took a lot of courage to show this. I hope your plants stabilize and recover now. Thank you for sharing your experience with us. As oils go, I’ve only ever used Neem oil, with a drop of dish detergent in a quart of tepid water to treat pests. You can wipe down leaves, and it works for the area around your plants too. You can flush pots with it. Some people use Neem cake to make a tea, or pot with the cake. There is also Neem meal, a granular form of Neem, which I sprinkle into pots to deter pests. Neem also contains a small amount of NPK.😊I also use Zevo type bug lights that plug into an outlet and attract pests, with STEM spray. (All available on Amazon.). In spite of all my treatments, there is always one little gnat or something flying around my orchids.🤷🏼‍♀️I can’t seem to rid myself of them all, but I am pretty happy with my pest control results overall. Tough one EJ, wow!😮 😢

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much for your help. I cannot get the Zevo, it is not allowed to use here in the Netherlands. But I do use my paraffin oil with success, I just wanted to add something that would help to keep the bugs away for a bit longer. That’s why I tried the tea tree. As we saw, that didn’t turned out as I hoped! … Lesson learned. So, I need to go back to my usual spray and everything should be fine again.

[@zula6436]

😧 ohhh,my....so sorry for you ,Eelke ....jeezzz.....well, it is what it is .... there is nothing else to do now except moving forward and give them a bit more tlc. Have you thought about introducing predatory mites? 😊 They will do fine in you care ,I know it ! ☘ 😉😀. Please let us know how the 🌿🌱🍃are doing . Thank you for sharing your experience and showing us that growing orchids is not always glamorous, easy or without 💔.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much. And yes, I did think about that. But I still use the paraffin oil and alcohol so that is why I do not buy any predatory mits. Good suggestion though!

[@zula6436]

@@TheOrchidSaGa 😊

[@samanthaunderwood2445]

That is devastating, I'm sorry for you

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much! They are still alive. :D

[@chantalvillemure2595]

😮 so sad! They were so pretty and well grown… something similar happened to one of my dendrobium phalaenopsis that had spider mites and that I treated only with dish soap… all the leaves but one turned yellow brown and fell exactly like yours. I did not use tea tree oil though… I feel really sad for you! Like you mentioned it is an honest mistake. If anyone can fix this it is you EJ. You are such a great orchid grower. 🍀🍀🍀

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much for your kind words! I will try my best. My orchids have good roots still, so I hope that they have the energy to get going again. How is your Den Phal doing?

[@chantalvillemure2595]

@@TheOrchidSaGa we can only do our best… my dendrobium has not changed much… it only happened last week… but the 2 new growth that were just beginning (less than one cm) seem ok… they are still green 🍀🤞🏻🍀

[@littleorchids5674]

Oh noooo, this almost made me cry. In Rogers hippie soap, he used teatree soap not the oil. I use neem oil. But never so heavy the leaves feel greasy. The leaves need to be able to breathe. Now D. Nobile ( most of them)are Hardy plants. A good clean up, and they might make new growth. I can take a while, but mostly they do.❤

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

I do use paraffin oil with success. So you can use oil but never use to much! And I only use it when needed. Thank you so much for your support, I will try my best to let them recover!

[@robirobinson3602]

So sorry to hear Eelke! It's so tough for you looking at your once beautiful Dens suffer like this. 😢 I am so cautious with any oil on plants/orchids because I know I've seen such disastrous after effects especially on those with thinner leaves. I've heard Dens react negatively to many sprays. I hope they make a recovery with the number of canes available for future growths. One thing that is nice about catasetums, this years spider mite problem quickly disappears with the winter dormancy period coming on. I have other types of plants(Brugmansias) that are spider mite magnets... what a battle this year, but I keep them far away from my catasetinaes so I've not had issues. I will spray them sooner just to be sure before bringing them in for the winter. All the feels for you Eelke! 🤗❤️

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Last year mine catasetums were free from mites! I know how that feels LOL, they look AMAZING if they are free from pests. Such beautiful leaves. But like you mention, next year we will have new, fresh green leaves. I do use paraffin oil normally in my sprays with great success. Never had any issues, just do not spray it on the buds and blooms. I should have stick with that, but sometimes I like to try something new. I was looking for something that would leave a smell that the pests hate… This time it didn’t work at all! I will never use tea tree again… Thank you so much for your kind words, I will do an update soon! :D

[@gabrieleweidhuner5727]

So sorry to see what happened to your lovely orchids. These things unfortunately do happen but I'm sure some will rebound for you.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Indeed, they do.... Thank you so much! I will keep you all updated...

[@michaelmccarthy4077]

I am hesitant to say it wasn't the tea tree oil, but it is used by many growers in Australia as an insecticidal and antifungal on plants. Without knowing the ingredients in the soap, I can't say for sure, but there may have been something in the soap which caused the problem. Either the pH of the soap is quite low or something in it has a phytotoxic effect (such as with lemon juice and sunlight).

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

I should have thought of that! It might have been a different ingredient indeed… I just didn’t think of that… I should have at least mention this in the video. I will do that in my update. Although, not going to try tea tree again, maybe I did use too much, but I still think it is not really something the plants handle well. Like bleach. It can be done but still dangerous stuff to use, I think. Anyhow, thank you for your input!

[@Melissa-loves-orchids]

I’m so sorry EJ that this has happened. You can tell By your voice that it’s painful. I hope they make a recovery. ❤️‍🩹

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much, I hope so too! I will try my best. :D

[@Kjorchids-55]

This is sad my heart goes out to you because you feel so responsible for this tragedy you are such a good plant parent and l feel that they will recover under your care all the best❤

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much for your kind words and support. I will try my best! :D

[@PC-zg3eo]

I’m so sorry this happened but I think the yr will survive. I’m not surprised that the Dens had the worse reaction but once the canes are fine, they will survive. I’d just give them some seaweed to help them with the stress.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you, I hope that they will survive, they do have good root systems Luckly. And agree, Dens are known to take pest treatments not so well. I didn’t have any reactions like this from them when I did use the paraffin oil spray. So I will only use that and never try tea tree oil again!

[@sunahyun6339]

Thank you for sharing this info!

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

You are welcome, thank you for watching!

[@LauraStansfield-tw7xb]

Try not to beat yourself up... Though i know i would be doing the same.. if nothing else, it has taughtyou of the pest damage and i think youre mostly right from just viewing it, in my opinion ..youhave such beautiful plants and your excellent grower.. hoping your nobiles will make it and you will always do the best you can, and thats why we watchyour channel. Appreciate the information as i know it was hard to do this video

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much. I am now focusing on the positive again! That’s what we need.. But I do feel so sorry for the poor plants. They all do have some green leaves left, so, that does give me hope. Plus, they didn’t lose there roots, well not yet anyways. I will do updates.

[@rutherosado8718]

Is so heart breaking😫😫😫I did something very similar and I lost some but I was able to recuperate some. my solution was to watch them with soap water to remove all of the oily residue and I replaced the medium with new one and I did nothing else to them for two weeks. I recuperated 15 and lost 9. Another note oil and sun or light don’t get alone. Oils on leaves will overheat and dry out the leaves and burn. Love your videos.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

So good to read you did safe some orchids! That does give me hope :D I did clean them as much as I could. I didn’t repot them because I am afraid of extra stress for the plants that they will get after a repot…. Hopefully the rinsing was enough of the media was enough. Thank you so much for your help and kind words. I will do updates…

[@juanitahamilton9523]

I'm so so sorry this happened to your plants. 😭😭🤣🥴😔

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much!...

[@KatrinaFawcett]

Did you spray the back of the leaf with oil. If so it could be that you are blocking the stomata which is at the back of the leaf. Stomata blocked with oil could affect the process of transpiration, photosynthesis and respiration.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

I know, I do use Paraffin oil with great success. The orchids do not matter that oil, if you do not overdo it of course. But it really helps with killing the pests. But I though maybe I can make a mixture that keeps the pests/bugs away for longer. That’s what the tea tree oil was for…. And that didn’t work at all… So sad, but I did learn my lesson! Thank you for helping!

[@anndriggers6660]

Oh my goodness! Im so sorry! I think it was the sushine that burned the orchids because of the oil. Maybe you should rinse them off really well with soap and water and don't forget the roots! I really hope they get better.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

I did try to clean off the excess oil. And give them some seaweed for the stress. So far, we do have some green leaves on all the plants! Let’s hope they stay there and keep on working…. Thank you so much for watching and your help!

[@newmanmansell760]

Hi E.J. I feel your pain💔I think you made no mistake😌🙏The mealy bugs had done all the damage and the teatree oil and other ingredients just revealed the damage to see. Don't give up and keep ontop of the mealies💖

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much! I will go back to the original oil solution I had, never had any problems with those. It’s the one with paraffin oil in it. But that one will also entre the leaves/stems via the bite marks and leave some spotting… Anyway, lesson learned! 😊

[@LauraStansfield-tw7xb]

Very very sorry to see and my heart goes out to you .because just me seeing it made me gasp and feel for you. I believe they may bounce back. But.... Did you say you used hibiclens?? Because... I actually may know what happened if you did

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

No, I didn’t use hibiclens, I did use alcohol, tea tree oil and RO water. Normally I do use alcohol on its own or I do use a mix of RO water, paraffin oil and a little drop of liquid soap (organic).

[@tess.campbell]

Hopefully your plants will recover over time.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

I do hope so too! Thanks!

[@thelisteningdoctor3369]

I am so sorry that this happened.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you!

[@herminenoben88]

Hey E.J. Heel moedig van je om deze video te maken, ik vind het heel erg voor je maar je krijgt ze er wel doorheen, onlangs nog van iemand gehoord dat phalaenopsis geen olie verdraagt…..Rick L. zei onlangs dat hij steeds blij wordt van naar jouw mooie bloeiende collectie te kijken, dus na vallen weer recht staan en doorgaan, het lukt je wel! Je Vanda’s zien er schitterend uit ! ❤

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Dankjewel voor je lieve woorden! Het komt vast helemaal goed, het is alleen zo ontzettend sneu voor de planten. Desondanks een zeer wijze les!

[@FreedomRider1982]

Just subscribed !

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Thank you so much for subscribing! I hope you enjoy it. Btw, great channel name!

[@FreedomRider1982]

@@TheOrchidSaGa Thank-you !

[@randyz8890]

When I heard of tea tree oil on plants I was surprised because we use it as a cleaner in Australia like eucalyptus oil on its purest form. So is a big no no supposed to be. Like lemon, they all do harm than good if you put them on plants.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

You are so right. I was hoping that a little drop wouldn't hurt, but no… It is a BIG no! .. Poor plants, I did learn my lesson and will never try this again!

[@LauraStansfield-tw7xb]

Stairfab? I know of that stuff. Or we have something like that here but not for retail. Only can get it commercially.

[@randyz8890]

@@TheOrchidSaGa Also we’re talking about essential oils. Unless bought as a weak solution, trying to ‘mix’ it with water doesn’t make it less potent because of the very basic that oil doesn’t mix with water. Hence the spotting damage it caused on plants were the actual oil lands on.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

​@@randyz8890 You are right about the oil and water thing but the one I use is soap that has tea tree in it. If I do use the paraffin oil mix, the one I always use with success, I also add a little bit of dish soap (Organic) into the water to let the oil mix better with the water. Even then you will have the little oil drops on your leaves because the water dries way quicker and different than the oil. But that is what I want in this case, I want sticky oil on the leaves so that the bugs can not move anymore.

[@LizE2654]

I’m so sorry this happened to you 😢. Do advocate spraying on a preventative basis?

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

I am not familiar with advocate spraying. But I did give them a seaweed flush, so far, all the plants have at least a few green leaves left!... Let’s hope that those stay on… Thanks!

[@LizE2654]

@@TheOrchidSaGa what I meant was do you spray any treatments when there aren’t signs of trouble to prevent issues. I haven’t been doing that but notice a lot of growers do.

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

@@LizE2654 So sorry for my lack of English here! 😊Thank you for clarifying. I do spray only new plants, just to be safe. All the other plants I do only spray when I see bugs, I do not like to “over spray” them. That's why I need to keep a close eye on my plants, which I do like to do anyway! :D So no, not a fan of prevent spraying...

[@LizE2654]

@@TheOrchidSaGa please don’t apologize for your English. I think you do incredibly well! What do you spray your new plants with? A fungicide?

[@YnseSchaap]

This is the reason why I rather go nuclear then experiment with hippy soap or other "organic" persticides (I really hope it's the tea tree oil Eelke, it looks like some kind of "wet" rot)

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

The rot came after the treatment. So probably the damage did turn into a rot of some kind. I never have problems with the paraffin oil though. So back to the old solution and never use tea tree again….

[@dianabonilla6361]

Watch Ed’s Orchid's for help

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

I have been following Ed´s channel for years now. Wonderful grower. Thanks.

[@YnseSchaap]

Please stop uploading on Sunday morning, it wakes me up 🤣 (2 AM again)

[@suzisaintjames]

Quit sleeping with your phone or learn how to turn the bell off at night. Sending lots of love💕 from sunny🌞 Arizona 🌵. Take care of yourself and each other 😷

[@YnseSchaap]

@@suzisaintjames I always turn off my phone at night 😁It's the third time in a row I wake up at two in the morning and always at the same time Eelke uploads a video........there must be a connection 🤣

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

Again! I did try uploading on a Friday. But it doesn’t work with my schedule… So I am sorry, but you will be awake every Sunday mornings, I might add two more video’s. Around 4AM and 6AM… NO more sleep for you! :D

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

LOL... You are right! :P

[@TheOrchidSaGa]

I only post "Must see" videos! :P