A peek into my growroom

As I've been posting lots of pictures of pretty flowers since I started this blog, I thought it might be a good idea to give you all an idea of my growing conditions. I understand that these conditions might not be easy to replicate for the windowsill grower. I have always considered myself to be just another houseplant grower, but then I looked at the comparatively elaborate set-up I have for my plants, and realized that I might have been telling myself a little white lie. As it stands now, I can't see the point in attempting to grow a tropical plant if I can't at least approximate its natural conditions. How could I expect it to thrive? Naturally, the hybrids are a lot easier to care for than some (but not all) species, but even these have noticeably upped there game, as it were, since being placed in the growroom. If you are at all serious about growing orchids, I really would suggest that you try to make life as comfortable for them as you possibly can; they really do thank you for it. Also, know your limits. I only grow intermediate to warm growing orchids, as I know that I can't keep the cool growers happy, or if they are happy, they won't flower. I'm a sucker for a well grown Cymbidium or Oncidium, but I don't grow them as my conditions are too warm for them.

I won't go into the whole saga of lighting here, or the merits of fluorescent tubes over LED bulbs or vice versa as its likely to get overly complicated. For my plants I use 125 watt CFL tubes (Compact Fluorescent Light). They look like (and in fact are) simply a giant energy-saving light bulb, except brighter. Energy saving light bulbs from your local DIY shop won't be bright enough; I get my bulbs from a reputable hydroponics specialist. The bulb then fits into a mains powered light fitting with a reflector over the top of it to reflect light back down onto the plants, saving light being wasted. I don't do any complicated maths to work out the spacing (I've really no head for numbers), but I space the bulbs every 4 or 5 feet. I have attached a curtain pole to the ceiling above the benches to suspend the lights from, and the lighting unit (bulb plus reflector) hangs from this. I aim for the lights to be about 18 inches above the plants, although I'm not too strict about this. They run 14 hours a day, from a timer so I don't have to remember to turn them on and off every day.

You can see the setup (some of it) on the above photo. This side of the room houses the Phalaenopsis and the Paphiopedilums that don't need such bright light. In fact, they get the same light as the Vandas (yes, you read it right). The great advantage of growing under lights is that the plants will take far more light than they will if you grow them under natural light without burning (provided the plants don't touch the lights), resulting in faster growth, and more flowers. You might also notice that I have attached silver foil to the walls. This is, once again, to reflect light to where it is needed. Out of sight on this photo is a large high velocity fan which runs while the lights are on, providing strong air movement for the plants. I have directed the fan upwards so the moving air hits the ceiling and is then dispersed throughout the room rather than having the fan blowing directly onto the plants. A shot of the other side of the growroom shows the higher light plants....

Note the Vandas in bloom... I was given a higher power bulb which I have set higher up in there so that the taller plants can sit under it. I know the plants are getting sufficient light because there is no stretching of new growths, plants bloom well and many of them have taken on the correct colouring of their foliage.

The grow lights I have in there do produce a certain amount of heat. This might be seen as a disadvantage by some growers who want super efficient lights that kick out practically zero heat (specifically LED lighting), but I see the extra heat as an advantage as it means I don't have to heat the growroom at all (there is a radiator in there but it is turned off). The temperature at lunch time is usually hovering around 22C, and it might get a little higher later in the day. Bear in mind that at time of writing it is January and the temperature outside is around 5C. Pretty good, I'd say. I have spent quite a bit of time looking for more efficient bulbs, but if I did that, I'd have to heat the growroom, so where would the benefit be? Another advantage is that the heat is both gentle and timed so that the plants are naturally warmed during the day and are a cooler at night. During the summer, the ambient temperature is quite a bit higher, but even this isn't a problem as I can simply open the window to let extra heat escape.

Humidity and watering are kind of tied together for me. I try not to let the plants dry out altogether as this opens the door to all sorts of pests and diseases (specifically red spider mite which causes havoc on indoor plants). As can be seen above, my plants all stand in grow bag trays so they don't drip onto the floor too much. I use a 5l sprayer to water them, and I might fill that three times during the course of watering. Once every month or so, I include some orchid food (I'm using Orchid Focus at the moment) at the recommended strength. If I'm intending to give the plants a good thorough wetting, I might empty three 5l cans in there. Any water caught in the trays can stay there until it has either been drawn up into the pots or has evaporated. In between these times, I use one 5l can ever couple of days to help keep the humidity up. It was my intention to do this every day, but having watched to see how fast they dry down, this is too much. It might be that I'll have to up this during the summer when the temperature is naturally higher.

In future, I intend to fit a small extractor fan in there somewhere to pull fresh air through the growroom. This is in addition to the fan I mentioned earlier, which is just blowing the same air round. I do keep the growroom well ventilated by leaving the door open (it doesn't lead to outside) so the air can mix properly . I should point out that there are some disadvantages to making life so good for your orchids. Mostly, the humidity can cause problems, and I do get a LOT of water condensing on other windows in the house. Luckily, the growroom  is kind of separate from the rest of the house, so this is not too much of a problem for me, but is worth bearing in mind if you are considering a set-up of your own.

Having a growroom as opposed to a greenhouse is, in my mind, a distinct advantage. It is easier to control the temperature indoors, and is a lot cheaper to heat than a greenouse is, especially during winter. Of course, some growers prefer to grow cool growing orchids, and this works better for them. I have gradually modified my collection to suit the conditions I have. I keep banging on about how I'd like a greenhouse of my own, but it would only present a new set of challenges. Having lighting is definitely an advantage, especially during our short winter days. This is especially noticeable on the properly tropical species that come from areas that do not experience our variation in day length. For example, it is very problematic to keep Vandas happy during winter in our climate. They don't die during winter, but they do enter a state of semi-hibernation from which they take a long time to wake. This obviously affects their flowering capability. Under lights they can be kept growing year round, and therefore flower twice as often.

I hope you have enjoyed your virtual tour of my growroom. Maybe I've proved that it isn't so daunting as it seems and hopefully you will be inspired to try this method for yourself.