Oncidium Orchids project - They need more light!

[@glendaurmacher3266]

Dani, I have that leaf tip problem with my oncidiums from fertilizing too often, or too strong a solution. Weakly weekly. I cut the leaf tip and dip in cinnamon and it helps the plant look better. try it and let me know if it works.

[@katrinamayr9745]

Hi Dani! Are you able to do time lapse videos? As a new orchid grower, I would love to see a time lapse of the development of Oncidium type pseudobulb from "nubbin" to plump pseudobulb. I haven't been able to find many videos or pics from tall and narrow new growth to PB. Thanks!

[@sharonkathleen4488]

I have wire shelves and use T5 for lights BUT, our electric bill has doubled, so been looking for something better. Do you think LED shop light would work?

[@mayaprakash4406]

Another great video! My twinkle (Red Fantasy) also gets yellow tips (no spotting though). But yes, I have it in my western window and it seem to LOVE it. The flower spikes (there are 5) from first signs to now (they have buds forming) took 2 months. BUT, it use to be in an eastern window. Since moving it, it progressed much quicker :)

[@--Paws--]

The Sharry Baby I gave my neighbor had hers set on the southern window. Hers bloomed every year and much faster than the Sharry Baby I had under artificial lights. My current Sharry Baby has spotting but not as much, it is growing by the south window. My past orchids under lights had die-back with spots. Rossioglossum Rawdon Jester also get spots on the leaves. I remember aquarium plants get spots and holes due to some nutrition deficiency. They thrive and grow but have a certain lack in something.

[@jenniferkarnowski8647]

My Oncidiums do the same thing however I'm pretty sure it was my super hard water so I changed to filtered or osmosis water and its much better now!

[@Neveets11]

hi I THINK your leaves are spotted and yellow cuz there s not enough humidity in the air. my friend s orchid did the same as she had put it in her house. she gave it to me and now the leaves are just beautiful.

[@DavidJames0305]

My twinkle has a spike but no blooms. Maybe I need to move mine to!

[@familhagaudir8561]

I have no success with Cattleya as my climate is too cool and sunlight is poor, but Oncidium Twinkle and sotoanum bloom fine in front of an East or West facing window. They really don't need that much. Sharry Baby also managed to bloom, but not as reliably. However, when I moved my Sharry Baby to a south-facing window, no shading, I got a MASSIVE improvement in growth. I cannot wait for the spikes to start from the monster pseudobulb! The south-facing window is still not enough for Cattleyas where I live, sadly ( aborted spikes or flowers lasting less than a week ). So I think you are spot on about Oncidium doing best in "near Cattleya" light. (I tried flurescent light for my Cattleya, leaves almost touching the tubes, and I get great growth but no spike. Not willing to spend for HPS higher intensity fixture and lamps.)

[@poples5799]

I would love to hear more about artificial lighting! I live above the arctic circle which means I have two months (at least) of darkness ahead of me in nov-dec-jan (not to mention little daylight even outside that period all winter) and three orchids and an anthurium (plus other but a little more hardy plants) that I am considering getting some light for. However I'm very new to owning plants and keeping them and I know nothing of lights for plants. Also, lights for plants looks so expensive!!

[@familhagaudir8561]

Hi, for Phalaenopsis and Anthurium, you can do well with pretty affordable stuff. With one of those standart T8, 32W fluorescent fixtures with 4 tubes, 4 feet long, you can easily grow a dozen plants or more. If you do not plan to get more plants, a 2 tubes fixture will be enough. ( You can even grow a plant or two under a single compact fluorescent 23W lamp. It worked great for my Zygopetalum. ) Fluorescent tubes do not emit much heat. ( With incandescent or high pressure sodium lights, heat can be a problem. ) Pick regular "cool white" tubes. The price difference for "horticultural tubes" is not worth the small performance difference over "cool white" ones. Get an automatic timer for your lights and set it so the plants get 14 hours of light per day. ( 12 to 16 hours is an acceptable range, anything over 16 hours is waste, anything over 18 hours will harm your orchids. ) For Phalaenopsis, the leaves should be about 6 to 10 inches away from the tubes. The only tricky thing is when they grow flower spikes. You need to either guide the spike away from the tubes ( if they touch the tubes, the tip dies ), put the Phalaenopsis further away from the tubes ( not alway possible or practical ), or move the plant to a window when the spike gets long enough to be a worry. Most orchids that bloom with "Phalaenopsis light levels" will do very well under fluorescent tubes.

[@nefertarymeretmut3581]

Hi Dany! Could you share with us the research you did with the LED grow light please? I would really appreciate it! Love you channel as always

[@reneejolley7954]

I have an Aerogarden that I've re-purposed last year- pretty much so everything did very well under it - it had the added advantage of a bit of humidity when the pump ran - unfortunately, the pump quit, so its strictly used for the light aspect. I have a smaller Aerogarden with LED lights that the Bulbos & a few other smaller plants are under, and they too seem to be doing ok. I do have a larger LED Aerogarden that will be pressed into service until I get shelves & lights up..

[@ravenjane8852]

I don't have the same problem. I have a Oncidium Sweet Sugar standing on my window bench facing north without extra light. It developed a flower spike just about two weeks ago and it's already 20 cm long. It's a really fast growing Oncidium for me but I guess it's a hybrid, I don't really know.

[@karenhaygood2644]

Deni, my oncidium has a yellow leaf next yo the bulb did I let it to dry

[@manygaga1]

oh yes, I stopped buying oncidiums because most of them need a lot of light to rebloom (cattleya amount of light). I also found out that seedling phals need more light than fully mature plants.

[@cnpf312]

Do you think those blue and pink LED lights in addition to regular fluorescent lights work better?!

[@tracyelliottclifford4863]

I just received my first Oncidium (Sharry Baby) in the mail. It is in a 4 inch pot and in spike. Can I repot it now to a bigger pot?

[@shinrin777]

the die-back maybe due to the humidity in the air? the spots though... no idea, I read though that it may be a symptom for stress... also here a link www.cloudsorchids.com/doctor/dspots.htm

[@pamelawhitmore2008]

Hey Danny can you please do more using superthrive?

[@HazelGwapsHazel]

I have that same problem also danny on the tips of the leaves of my heaven scent pacific sunrise and shelob thought that its a sunburn but y s my dancing lady dont have like that its just all the same place dont know y its happen 2 some of my oncidium

[@Mr6645777]

Hai,can I put oncidium at sun light

[@alisonmaczka7359]

I like onciduim types but they aren't really space saving. They are so bushy and green and pretty but not so good when you don't have a lot of space. So for now what I have is what I have sadly.If you like fragrant cattleyas and you love orange and red warm flowers you should look for the Akiko Sato Volcano Queen. Love her to death. She has big gorgeous flowers that last a good long time and the fragrance is wonderful!

[@GL1FE]

hi Danny , i was wondering if there was a way to train sympodial orchids to shape their direction of growth through placing them in the direction of their source of light ? i remember you mentioning this in another video it could have been about catts or oncidiums but i don't remember which one ? it would be good to know how to do this for people who have small spaces to grow their orchids so they can keep their plants compact. I personally would love to do this but as usual the question is how ?and i don't mean training it with a metal wire or bamboo stake . I think thats something totally different , which i will try too! thanks so much , keep the videos coming ~ xx Leah

[@lteizen]

Hi Danny, hope you're doing well. I have a leaf tip die back problem with my Coelogyne cristata and I found this AOS article which looks similar to what I see on my plants and on your Oncidiums. Take a look on the article's picture (at least I think it looks similar). Hope it helps! www.aos.org/orchids/orchid-pests-diseases/fertilizer-burn.aspx

[@sanolio6131]

Hi

[@terrychrist535]

Spots on leaves can be caused by sunburn. 😝