How I Saved My Orchids Using The Self Watering Method
As with most plant beginners, I started my orchid journey with enthusiasm but little real-world experience. The majority of orchid for beginner guides recommend moss, or a mixture of moss and bark, as the preferred potting mix for phalaenopsis orchids. While that worked decently well in the winter, by the time summer came and my home humidity went down to around 30%, my orchids' roots were becoming dry and crispy, especially at the top of the stem. Sensing a decline in my orchids' growth was eminent, I started researching other methods for growing orchids in environments with low humidity.
Why I Chose The Self Watering Method
The self watering method involves using a self wicking potting mix and a string or microfiber cloth that hangs into a reservoir pot underneath. It is similar to semi hydroponics, except you don't let the water in the reservoir underneath to fully touch the orchid pot above. The idea is to let the string wick the water below up into the pot, keeping the orchid roots moist but not too wet.
I wanted to try self watering, as it fixes some of my major issues with using traditional organic medium as my potting mix. Sphagnum moss requires a bit of a learning curve in assessing when or when not to water your plant. It dries out first at the top of the pot, while potentially remaining wet below, and thus overwatering your orchid. As with all organic mixes, moss will eventually degrade, requiring you to repot your orchid at some point in the future.
I also travel quite a bit throughout the year, and self watering enables me to fill the reservoir with enough water that it doesn't need manual watering when I'm gone. This is also helpful for my boyfriend, who has no idea how to care for my plants when I'm gone for 2 months at a time. Ideally, he would just need to check when the water below runs out, and fill it up again.
My Self Watering Set Up
There are various options for a self wicking potting mix, including lava rock, leca, pumice, perlite, pon, or any combination of these. I picked pumice for my set up, as it is not as expensive as leca, while still having some weight that will hold down my plant pot. Its porous surface allows air to flow in between each rock, helping to prevent root rot. I also learned from other orchid owners on YouTube that leca tends to dry out at the top, one of the things I wanted to avoid by using self watering in the first place.
My orchids are potted in medium size pumice, about 3/4 inch size, inside a nursery pot with draining holes at the bottom. You can use any pot with drainage, but I try to use transparent pots to better see the root system grow. I have a string wick that runs through the holes of this inner pot, and the whole pot can be placed into any container, cache pot, or decorative pot. I prefer a clear pot for my reservoir too, so take out soup containers are some inexpensive options. But I have also tried finding plastic cups or ceramic pots from places like Home Goods, Michaels, Party City, Ikea, and local nurseries.
If your orchid pot doesn't perfectly fit on top of your cache pot, try adding rocks or something inorganic at the bottom of the reservoir so it lifts the nursery pot up. Clear pots do cause algae build up faster, so if you prefer less clean up or a cleaner aesthetic, use an opaque pot instead. Adding a top layer of river pebbles or any non wicking rocks will help prevent the top drying out.
With self watering, you need to provide nutrients in your water that your plants might otherwise receive in inorganic mixes. I add a weak mixture of orchid fertilizer, Cal-Mag, kelp supplement, and plant probiotic into my water for every watering. I've seen recommendations to flush your plants with regular water once a month, or on a semiregular basis to prevent build up from the fertilizer. Most of my orchids live in my indoor greenhouse with high enough humidity that I don't worry about flushing as condensation builds up in the pots naturally.
Speed Up Orchid Growth With a Greenhouse
Setting up your orchids in self watering pots is probably enough for your plants to thrive on their own. However, I felt like an indoor greenhouse set up might be necessary for the desert weather I live in every summer.
I purchased a greenhouse plant shelf from Amazon, that included Barrina grow lights and all the accessories needed to daisy-chain them together. The humidity inside my greenhouse can get up to 80% while the temperature can rise to 90 degrees. Because of this, I have 3 fans that blow periodically throughout the day, one on each shelf. The airflow brings the temperature down to around 75, and prevents bacteria build up from the moisture levels inside. I recommend only using one Barrina light per shelf. The heat from the grow lights is very intense and has burned my orchids' leaves. I have a smart plug that schedules my lights and fans to turn on at sunrise and off at sunset, based on my local time.
A self watering setup can also be used inside DIY greenhouse chambers, such as clear box containers or propagation boxes. I've used these types of boxes as my ICU set up, where I needed to nurse my rootless orchids back to health without too much disturbance. From my experience, as long as you can get the humidity to about 60%, it will kick-start some root or leaf growth. Simply adding a humidifier where your plants are growing, or grouping your orchids together, can also increase the humidity.
I mainly grow my summer blooming phalaenopsis orchids in the greenhouse, but my no ID orchids also go inside once their flowers drop off. The higher humidity seems to be helping with root and leaf growth. I have had my orchids in self watering pots and inside the greenhouse for about a month now, and every one of my 20 or so orchids are growing new roots or a new leaf. I will try to post growth updates of my orchids every few weeks, and to see how winter might affect the greenhouse temperatures.
When NOT To Use Self Watering For Your Plants
As most responsible growers will tell you, what works for me might not work for you in your environment your plants live in. I’ve seen orchids thriving outside in rainwater, living in lava rock or leca. But those growers live in tropical weather and temperatures, which can’t be mimicked where I live in Southern California. For me, self watering works because I get too low humidity during the summer months. Needing to monitor watering less frequently was also a plus.
If your humidity and temperature are consistently at proper orchid growing levels, which is about 60%-70% humidity, and 75F, I don’t think it’s necessary for self watering, or semi hydro. Sphagnum moss and bark is a suitable potting mix where your orchid roots can still dry out without getting too soggy. I don’t think a self watering set up would do too well in temperatures lower than 60F, as roots will be susceptible to rot from being too cold and wet.
The winters where I live can actually get below 60F during the nights, so I will be closely monitoring the temperature in my indoor greenhouse during that time. I might have to water less frequently, or add some heating mats underneath my plant pots to make sure the roots don’t stay too wet and cold.
