How To Fertilize Catasetums - with Fred Clarke

Fred Clarke was kind enough to join me for a chat about fertilizing Catasetums and other types of orchids. Check out this eye opening chat for tips and tricks to get bigger, better growths!

[@Kokoro-Hime]

WOWOWEE! Thank you very much for inviting Fred, and for your continuous journey to be a better grower. I learned so much! During the talk, my mind is racing in how I can apply to my own growing conditions and watering habit. Take care!

[@SVKLOrchids]

Excellent! I love it when the videos make people think about how best to implement changes!

[@StormCastlePD]

This is hands down, one of the best videos I’ve ever seen. Thank you so much for being willing to bring this to the table! AWESOME!!!!

[@SVKLOrchids]

Awesome! I’m glad it’s helpful!

[@loribadgero1035]

This perfect timing!! 😊❤❤

[@SVKLOrchids]

🙌😃

[@orchidsbythelake]

So, I have this siphon thing. You can find similar thing at Lowe’s or Home Depot. It works fine. Problem is I can’t use it in winter. My tap water would be too cold. I attended (on Zoom) his class (particularly this 80% one) through my orchid society. This speech blew my mind! Since then, I have been somehow doing this… I throw slow release in summer. It’s too much of hassle for me to mix fertilizer everyday… (about 5-8 gl). Then around this season, I switch to rain water plus fertilizer. Assuming the slow release has already lost its nutrition in them. I don’t water often either. Therefore plants do get much fertilizer naturally. And also doing 1/3 collection repot from last year. It made my work easier… he goes “your orchids won’t die for not repotting 1 year” 😂 I shared it on my video last year (2 years ago?) but this is way better! Such nice opportunity to hear this directly from him! Thank you for sharing!

[@SVKLOrchids]

Fred really does have great advice and he’s kind enough to tell folks about his experience!

[@MyGreenPets]

That was awesome, thank you Stephen and Fred!

[@SVKLOrchids]

It was a fun one!

[@FernandaNascimentoOrchids]

So much to learn, I hope you can do it again. Thanks to the both of you 😍❤️

[@SVKLOrchids]

Yes, I think we'll do it again!

[@victoriabakhvalova]

Thank you so much! This video is golden.

[@SVKLOrchids]

Thank you!

[@orchidhouse]

Great stuff! Thank you Fred and Stephen!

[@SVKLOrchids]

My pleasure!

[@NinjaOrchids]

When you have huge rolls of blank tags on a shelf, you know you have a lot of goodies on the way 😃 i love my female blooms.. this year, as a test, i did exactly the same as last year, to see if last year wasn't a fluke... got me female blooms again 👍🏼 interesting to hear about dividing often .. I will do that with mine next year. Thank you so much to both of you for this very informative video 👍🏼👍🏼

[@SVKLOrchids]

I think I’ll be dividing a lot my plants in the spring!

[@latalaxmanjohnson3897]

Thank you Fred and Stephen for the information

[@SVKLOrchids]

You're welcome!

[@faribaj.4619]

Awesome video! Thank you so much. Very helpful.

[@SVKLOrchids]

No problem!

[@paulhoffman6294]

One of the things that we hear over and over is having the proper pH for fertilizer absorption. Seems like a range of about 5.7-6.4 or thereabouts is optimum based on scientific research. Of course natural fertilization doesn’t provide for any pH control. Using the MSU rainwater blend at 1/2 teaspoon per gallon knocks the pH down into the low 4’s and requires some upward adjustment, I’d guess (I use potassium hydroxide carefully, being a retired chemist and all). I wonder what you and Fred might think about the pH factor?

[@SVKLOrchids]

I use rainwater, which naturally falls at 5.6. I’ve always wondered why the “ideal” pH is thought to be above 5.6! Unfortunately, I don’t have an answer for that one!

[@bretfurgason7615]

Excellent information!!!

[@SVKLOrchids]

Thank you!

[@swknoell]

Thank you, both of you, for teaching us something new.

[@SVKLOrchids]

My pleasure!

[@brianmorley6293]

Very helpful! Thank you so much, great info, especially about the male vs female blooms!

[@SVKLOrchids]

You’re welcome!

[@Muffin21814]

Thank you so much for that Stephen very helpful 😁😁👍 And thank you to Fred.😊😊

[@SVKLOrchids]

You’re welcome! Hopefully Fred and I can do it again!

[@patriciasorchids3999]

Very interesting, lots of useful information. Thank you for making another wonderful video.

[@SVKLOrchids]

I’m glad to do it!

[@michaelpye5972]

Wonderful information. Thank you both from Queensland Australia

[@SVKLOrchids]

You’re welcome! Hopefully one day I can see your collection in Queensland!

[@JuliesOrchids]

thank you so much for this. :)

[@SVKLOrchids]

My pleasure!

[@NicoleDeanna]

Excellent stuff here! Really enjoyed this chat!

[@SVKLOrchids]

Thanks! I figured this would be useful information to get out and about!

[@stephenorchids4943]

Very interesting video 👍

[@SVKLOrchids]

Thanks!

[@elen_chris]

Thank you!!!

[@SVKLOrchids]

My pleasure!

[@babyashy0802]

Absolutely love SVO. I know when I order from them I am getting excellent plants. I have always used a slow release fertilizer on my catasetums "osmocote" plus they also get fertilized when I do the rest of my orchids with 20-20-20 since I started collecting them and so far I am happy with the results but I havent get female flowers. Thanks for sharing so much information in just few minutes.

[@SVKLOrchids]

I'm glad this was useful!

[@johnmickel2330]

Great video -Escodido-- Some much o your favorite orchid😂🤣😃😁

[@SVKLOrchids]

😃🙌

[@angelaharrilal669]

Very good tips on fertilizing,lhave learn some tips,thanks,

[@SVKLOrchids]

Glad it’s helpful!

[@theorchidcafe3951]

I think I found my answer to my previous question about females - so according to Fred, under fertilize, lower light and divide.

[@SVKLOrchids]

Yes, exactly!

[@hillbillyorchids]

Yes yes yes! Less is so much more! Great video! I didn't see any fights break out! 🤣🤣

[@SVKLOrchids]

Ha! Fights are bad!

[@hillbillyorchids]

@@SVKLOrchids Isn't that just jaw dropping 😳 I will never understand why it is such a heated debate.

[@SVKLOrchids]

@@hillbillyorchids No kidding!

[@marygorchidsmore2058]

Great talk, thanks very much for arranging this. Fred is a highly respected grower which almost every one in US got some of his hybrids. Even in EU you can find his hybrids. I really like the expert talks and looking forward to see more in future. Question: is the low fertiliser with each watering suitable for all kinds of orchids?

[@SVKLOrchids]

Yes! This video is geared towards Catasetums but the techniques are applicable to all orchids.

[@andredumas9547]

Hi Stephen, very interesting video with Fred Clarck, I have a fredclarkera after dark black pearl, it’s doing very well, bought it last spring, hasn’t flowered this year but I am hopeful that it will in 2022. Extremely important discussion with him, about fertilizing orchids, it would also have been interesting to discuss potting methods with him, maybe next time (.?) Thanks Stephen for these discussions with people who are experts in orchids growing, not easy for you to arrange but appreciated by us your followers.

[@SVKLOrchids]

I plan to speak with Fred again!

[@PC-zg3eo]

Good information. I use the Hozon siphon, it’s very easy. I usually use 1/4 strength each week.

[@SVKLOrchids]

I’ve got a siphon now as well!

[@toddstropicals]

Yeah he is quite the guy and knows his stuff.

[@SVKLOrchids]

For sure! He’s got great lectures.

[@CodnerL]

A very informative chat. Upon your earlier recommendation, I've been using the Jim's Organic fertilizer with all of my orchids this year. I think it's done wonders for my plants as far as growing bigger, stronger and producing healthier spikes/sheaths. I'm just now getting 1st-time flower spikes on my catesetums, YAY! So, I'm not sure if I want to return yet to the "watering daily, weakly" routine in the spring. Are you planning to switch to the daily siphon-watering regimen? If so, what do you plan to do with your organic fertilizer?

[@SVKLOrchids]

I’ve also had amazing growth on all my plants with Jim’s Purely Organic, so I’ll continue to use it. I want to do an experiment next year with the continuous feed. I’m actually wondering if I can use Jim’s and dissolve it in water and use the siphon with it. That’s a long winded way for me to answer your question and ultimately say “I don’t know” lol

[@CodnerL]

@@SVKLOrchids 😂 Long-winded is good because now you've prompted me to think of some similar ideas for experimenting with Jim's Purely Organic as well :) Maybe we'll need to grind the organic feed down further into a finer powder (so it doesn't clog things up)? Hmm...🤔

[@SVKLOrchids]

@@CodnerL I wonder if a pinch or two per gallon will dissolve on it's own after a day or two?

[@CodnerL]

@@SVKLOrchids Good idea. Once I finish getting ready for school tomorrow, I'll go out and try it -- 2 pinches per gallon. I'll let you know this week if it works for me 🤞🏽

[@SVKLOrchids]

@@CodnerL Yes, please let me know what happens!

[@andrewmonteiro4341]

I'm super happy I came across this video because I was under the assumption that I would need to mix the strongest solution(1tsp. per gal.) for my new catasetums (30-10-10) which I am using to feed my cymbidium. I am considering trying the same fertilizer at a weaker Solution 1/2 tsp per gallon on one of them to see what happens what do you suggest? also I will be feeding the others with 1/2 tsp. of the 20-20-20 fertilizer every other week like my other orchids

[@SVKLOrchids]

I think either would work!

[@andrewmonteiro4341]

@@SVKLOrchids thank you ! I will try both on different catesedums see which one gives me a better result

[@richardlawton1023]

What ppm are you using at beginning of watering then at peak growing time?

[@michaelmccarthy4077]

great talk. The one issue I still have is whenever a grower says "100 ppm Nitrogen". In a commercial setting, this is easy to do mathematically. For a home grower, you have to measure out 1 Kg (1 liter) water and add 645 mg calnitrate (assuming this is your nitrogen source) and measure the total TDS of the solution to know at what TDS is 100 ppm regardless of what volume of water you are using. As it happens, this will give you a reading ~450 ppm using just calnitrate. With MSU, that number is, IIRC, ~437 ppm total gives you 100 ppm N. With GrowMore 20-20-20, I think that was nearly 700 ppm (I can't find my notes from when I did the calculations and measurement). Nobody that I know generally feeds that high all the time. When I think of continuous low feeding, I think of 150 ppm total, or less, every time you water. So do I need to rethink what I am doing? Perhaps I have been under feeding for quite some time?

[@SVKLOrchids]

Can you do an experiment next season and see how plants respond to higher fertilizer rates? Might be a useful trial!

[@michaelmccarthy4077]

@@SVKLOrchids Well, it would have to be done on plants I grow indoors under lights because the plants outside get rained on all summer, so there is a lot of flushing. Interestingly, we had one of the wettest summers we have had in some time, through to the end of September. I didn't do a lot of feeding since we had so much rain. I was out looking at my Den anosmums today and the canes produced this year are by far the longest I've ever grown. Which makes me wonder, again, how much feed do orchids really need? Is feed that important for growth phase or just for bloom production? (and this is why fertilizer is such a hot button issue)

[@SVKLOrchids]

@@michaelmccarthy4077 Orchids really don’t need much! However, the deciduous ones (like anosmum) need more food. I wonder if the longer canes will produce more flowers?

[@michaelmccarthy4077]

@@SVKLOrchids I'd like more flowers! I've been hitting them with more P since they are done growing and they are in the nutrient storage phase. That's one advantage of the Jack's 2 part system, you can scale back the N after growth has completed without scaling back the other nutrients (except Ca but they don't really need that now either).

[@trendworld9803]

@@michaelmccarthy4077 Hi there, I see your comments on a lot of videos I watch! I had a question for you since you also use the Jacks 2 part system. I have about 20-30 Phalaenopsis and have been using jacks for about a year now. I see that people often recommend using "100 ppm Nitrogen" like you said, but for MSU 13-3-15 I think that equates to about 435-440ppm which seems extremely high for an indoor home grower even in the peak of summer. May I know what ratio you use of both the 15-0-0 and 5-12-26? Or what you recommend? I don't know if I'm feeding too low and its hard to tell because not a lot of people use the Jacks 2 part system. Typically I feed 3/4 weeks year round (the plants are in bark/perlite/charcoal) and I generally feed at about 85-120ppm of the 15-0-0 and 50-60ppm of the 5-12-26 in distilled 0ppm water. I'd love to hear your opinion. I'm also thinking of adding 30-50ppm of the kelppak every feeding day so 3/4 weeks but not sure if thats too high or too low. My plants are growing great but if they can handle more fertilizer I definitely want to give them that!

[@ceeteemcdee4126]

Does this rule out the little fertilizer baskets, then? I'm new to the channel and am going to use my own little McGyvered basket creations for the first time as an experiment... Do you think it would be ok to add a small ratio of calcium nitrate pellets to the slow release mix?

[@SVKLOrchids]

I still use the Purely Organic in the baskets, but not the cal-mag

[@victoriabakhvalova]

There's a question that people are asking in Russia here after watching this video. If we add fertilizer each time we water does that mean that we do not flush with clear water ever or it's just has not came up in the conversation? And also what about waterings during dry season. Do we add fertilizer or we just reduce it to zero since nothing is growing? It was a bit unclear. :)

[@SVKLOrchids]

No need to flush if you’re using a very low concentration. I personally don’t use any fertilizer in winter (or now either), though any plant that is actively growing can certainly use fertilizer, even in winter.

[@juliettest.pierre130]

How strong do you make the stock solution to get a quarter of half strenght soluction with a Dramm siphon?

[@SVKLOrchids]

That’s a math question I haven’t had time to think about! The ratio should be about 16 parts water in the hose to one part water in the siphon bucket.

[@TheDanEdwards]

My earlier comment seems to have been deleted. Anyway, thanks for doing this.

[@SVKLOrchids]

For some reason I’m losing a lot of comments on this video for some reason! Not sure if it’s a KZbin glitch or what!

[@bretfurgason7615]

Fred says he water's ? Daily, bi-weekly ,weekly at 100ppm (11.42 in video) i normally use 100 per week... indoor grow area in Indiana

[@SVKLOrchids]

I’m not sure how often he waters! I suspect it changes with temperature.

[@BBQNBLUES]

As of Today I will STOP using 1-TBLsp per gallon of 20-20-20 ! Putting my Orchids on a Diet :)

[@SVKLOrchids]

Ha! I bet you’ll save some money too!

[@dazzahoward7104]

Catt-lee-uh, it's not pronounced Catt-lay-uh. Interesting video, thanks for sharing this information with us.

[@SVKLOrchids]

I’ve only heard them called Catt-Lee-uh by a handful of people during my 30 years of growing, so I’ll stick to saying Catt-lay-ah 😜😜 Where are you growing?

[@dazzahoward7104]

@@SVKLOrchids Australia. If you look up the pronunciation via Google you will see how it should be said. But i am no authority on it.

[@SVKLOrchids]

@@dazzahoward7104 Ah, I was wondering if there was a dialect difference! I’ve found that latinized names can have all types of pronunciations. Your pronunciation may very well be correct with us Americans giving it an odd twang.

[@michaelpye5972]

According to the AOS it is pronounced Cattleya (KAT-lee-a)

[@deachen5560]

My mantra is Weekly Weakly.

[@SVKLOrchids]

That's a good mantra!

[@michaelpye5972]

There is formula to work out how to get 100ppm of nitrogen from any fertiliser

[@SVKLOrchids]

Do you have a link?