Is that shelf completely enclosed? If so, I am surprised you even need a humidifier. Do you have a way of measuring humidity? How far from the window is the shelf? Thunderstorms shouldn't limit you to natural light. CFL electronics should survive a thunderstorm but get a surge protector and you shouldn't have any worry. I think they need a lot more than just the one CFL though. Maybe another on the opposite side and both need to be of a decent wattage ~65W and run 14+hr/dy. Nice going though, I like it. Fill that puppy up, even if it isn't with orchids, its all good.

H

Thanks for your help Howard. No, it isn't completely enclosed. The back, against the wall is open, so air circulates through the back and through the thin opening between and around the two glass doors. The thermometer, seen next to the cattleya, has a humidity gauge at the bottom. About 5 feet to the left of the greenhouse is the window; my house faces southeast. I have sheer curtains, so light comes through. Although, I do have a tree in the yard, so it isn't bright light later in the afternoon.

The CFL in the light is equivalent to 60 watts. What I'm struggling with is how often I would need the light on. On sunny or partly sunny days, I don't think it needs to be on much. However, on days when we have heavy rain, the room can get pretty dark.

Of course my othr fear is the use of electricity. One, I hate to raise the bill, even though I am only using a CFL. Also, I have "green guilt" about having lights on when no one is in the room! Hahahaha.

I did have other plants in the greenhouse, but I felt it was becoming overcrowded. I was afraid other plants would block the light for the orchids, or the stalks of other plants would get entangled in the orchids. But believe me, in addition to the greenhouse, my house is scattered about with plants everywhere.

Sarah

I have bad news for you. Given your setup as you describe you are growing without natural light. In essence you are completely dependent on the lights for the health and development of your collection. A 60W equivalent (14W actual) CFL is simply not enough light by far. When growing plants under lights it is the actual wattage that counts and even 60W actual (~250W equivalent) would be hard put to manage four shelves of mixed genera alone. I understand your concerns re: energy but there isn't much you can do. To make more use of the natural light available is possible and we could attempt to work out some strategies if there is interest in doing so. Foxwoods Casino uses more electricity in one second than you will in an entire year. Foxwoods is the largest consumer of electricity on the East Coast. In second place, the North East Electrified Corridor of Amtrak. Cut yourself a little slack about the kilowatt hours. Know, however, that in the meantime the Catt and its friends in the case are in metabolic free fall and though it will take a long while to hit bottom by the time you notice they are in distress it will probably be too late to bring them back. Sorry the news isn't better but I saw you posted on Kevin's thread. Kind of puts the misery in perspective that thread does.

H

Thanks Howard for your response. I think you too it to the extreme though. I do have natural light, in fact several of the orchids, including the two phals, have been growing there without an artificial light (the light I added) for a year now. The phals seems to be doing okay, but on one of them the flower stalk was a bit smaller than the prior year. This made me think they light was okay, but could be a bit better.

The big problem is really only on bad weather days, where it tends to get heavy overcast. I guess I'm just trying to figure out how much more light to add, and how often it should be on. For natural light, the best place is on the second floor of the house, but it just gets to hot upstairs in the summer for the orchids (and me sometimes). I did increase the watts of the artificial light, though probably still not enough, and have been turning it on in the early evening when the sun has shifted past the front of the house.

Sarah

I wanted to add something else. I remembered I had a old light meter in the shed, which I pulled out, however it is tempermental (reason why it is in the shed). The meter measures light in lux, my greenhouse gets about 200 lux in the evening as the sun sets, when the meter is working and if it is accurate. Of course, I'm not quite sure about how to translate that into lumens or fc. On a side note, I meant FC in the initial post, not CF (dyslexic moment).

Ugh, I dread the answer. Not enough light! Hahaha.

Sarah

Sarah, this is what I do in winter when the days are short and the sunlight limited. These plants are against So. West windows with multiple CFL's in floor lamps (bit embarassing, and my family tolerates it). These windows are large not shaded at all:
{{gwi:98740}}

Second photo is of a small office room which is warm but only has a Northern window. I put warm growers and plants which require some TLC in here under CFL's. These plants only spend a short time in here because they need the additional light from my living-room windows.

{{gwi:183778}}

The bottom line is that your plants need much more light for many hours. Howard is right, if you can't move the high-light plants outdoors, you need more lights. Put them on timers and run them at least 12-14 hrs. Your Phals are probably getting enough light from the windows. But Phals don't require as much light as your greenhouse plants.

Jane

Thanks Jane! You always have a way that doesn't sound dreadful!

Actually, the Phals are in the greenhouse too. You just can't see them well in the photo. I do plan on getting more lights to use, just have to figure out what kind. I don't want hanging lights with florescent tubes, b/c I don't plan on staying in this house for more than another year and don't want huge things to have to move. I'll figure it out. I'll probably end up with some design like yours, Jane. Not sure if my boyfriend will tolerate a "landing strip," though as you called it in another post! Haha.

Sarah

I just have to tell you how much I adore that Hello Kitty humidifier! It's so cute! It certainly adds a touch of whimsy to your set-up!

Lighting is my biggest problem, too... I only have decent natural light from my apartment's only east window. I currently have supplemental lighting set up in my east alcove, and I run the lights on a timer for about 14 hours per day. The plants that require more light are grouped closer to the source, and other plant types surround those.

My husband came back from his trip up north without the professional lighting system I'm borrowing from a friend... apparently, it wouldn't fit in the trunk of the car... and so, I'm going to invest in some of those multi-armed, octopus-looking floor lamps that everyone uses.

I thought I was the only one who had mini-greenhouses set up INSIDE! I'm glad to see that I'm not the only one trying to accomplish greenhouse conditions in my apartment! Since I live in an upstairs apartment out in the country, I doubt the airport-strength lighting blasting through my windows at night will bother anyone... although, it may draw the attention of local Law Enforcement, who may want to peek at my "crop"!

The timer for my lights was only about $8, and I've got it on a surge protector strip... a fairly cheap set-up, but it does the trick.

Thanks, I enjoy Hello Kitty as well. My cats get a kick out of it as well.

Back when she was on the floor in my bedroom, the cats were confused by this cat producing steam out of her ears!
{{gwi:183780}}

I plan to buy a higher watt CFL for the lamp that is there, and purchase another lamp at some point. I don't think the orchids will die without the artificial light, but their growth may be stunted.

Sarah

My daughter had Hello Kitty items when she was younger, like a book bag, as I recall... but I've never seen a humidifier quite like that! What a cute picture! Your cat appears a little curious... like, "Hello... uh... are you ok? You have smoke rising from your ears, there... and you haven't moved since you've been here!"

My orchids would grow much better if I were to summer them outdoors, I know, but there's no safe place to keep them outside. And so, I'm trying to emulate that much light and humidity indoors. It's not easy, or cheap!

I think that what we see as intense light coming in a window may be, in fact, not that much light to a plant... and because the sun travels and our windows don't, we have to compensate with artificial light. We do the best we can with the budgets we have, and we hope it's enough.

So far, my orchids are growing fine... but I know that without the proper light levels and other conditions, I'll probably never be able to bloom them... certainly not to the extent they'd bloom if I could grow them in a greenhouse situation, or outdoors all year! I'd dearly love to have professional lighting for my indoor set-up, but it's not in the budget plan. If I can't borrow the nice lights from my friend, I'll have to resort to something like the floor lamps pictured above.

It's tough to have lovely blooming plants that aren't always reaching for light when you live in a small apartment and have a small budget! I dream of one day having a house with an attached greenhouse or solarium... now, that would be nice!

I too dream of the day I have an outdoor greenhouse (and not the collapsible mesh kind) or even a sun room. For now, I will just have to dream of the day.

I did stop during a break between clients at Home Depot and picked up a much greater watt CFL. It is so big, I hope it fits in the lamp! If my clients saw this massive CFL in my bag, they would think I'm the one who needs therapy.

Sarah

If anyone saw my plant collection, they'd definitely think I needed therapy, never mind the lighting! I have my 6 orchids, which isn't bad... it's the 55 plus hippeastrum bulbs that comprise my indoor jungle that might make someone think I needed help! It can't be that bright in here from the lighting... I can still sleep with all the plant lights on!

With my luck, the dream of having a real greenhouse attached to my home, or having a solarium, will remain a dream! I swear... for every step we take forward, something kicks us back at least three steps! Just today, the car broke down en route to pick up some feed, and it turns out that the darn thing needs a fuel pump! There goes my floor lamp money! Oh well... I'll just start saving again!

Yeah, seems to be the story for everyone lately. I can't even dream of owning a house with a greenhouse outside until I'm through with a PhD. That will be several more years.

Oh well, at least we have what we have!

By the way, I laughed to myself when a client of mine was telling me she gets obsessive with things in her house, including her houseplant collection which started as one and ended up being six. I just thought, if only she saw my house!

Sarah

She thinks six plants is an obsessive collection? Oh my! Six only covers the very beginning of my orchid collection! And with the vast variety available, that collection will continue to grow for quite some time!

I have over 55 Hippeastrum bulbs total, and that collection continues to grow! Epiphyllum total over a dozen... along with the orchids, those are only three types of plants I collect... I can't even begin to count my Daylilies and Iris, although those are outdoor collectibles... and then there are the Miniature Roses...

My house looks like a jungle, my gardens are overflowing with plants, and I just keep collecting! It's a disease, really... an addiction! There are much worse things to be addicted to, though, so I count myself lucky to have a plant addiction!

I joke about going to Amaryllid Anonymous meetings, but if you ever come across an ad for plant or gardening addiction and a possible cure, it could help many of us and should be posted immediately! LOL!

My middle son is in college, with this being his last year... it's incredibly expensive! But, it's worth every penny spent! Without a degree, finding decent employment with a good company is next to impossible! I think my generation is the last that could get away without a college education... and still make decent money or have a decent career. I applaud your fortitude... to stick with it, and continue your education!

Good luck with your orchids... and your PhD!

Thanks! I agree, 6 is a small collection. Of course, being that I am her therapist, I didn't tell her about my collection or she may have thought I was the one in need of therapy. ;)

Sarah

Actually, I would think that caring for a vast collection of plants, regardless which kind, would be very therapeutic! My indoor plants definitely help me remain sane during the long, cold winters!

When the daylight hours grow shorter, my brain goes into depression... and, since I'm attached to that brain, it means several months of the blues... watching my bulbs bloom and caring for all my orchids and other plants, not to mention the artificial lighting, all help me maintain a certain sense of peace... until spring rolls around, and I can go outside and "play" in my gardens in the sun!

I think if I were a therapist, I'd recommend plant collecting and growing as an exercise... it teaches patience, nurturing... and it gives one a sense of accomplishment, and also joy when things grow and bloom!

Gardening is very therapeutic... at least, it is to me! Whether it's one plant, or an entire house full of greenery... I don't think I could live comfortably without them!

I agree. Unfortunately, I mainly work with parents who have mental illness. Considering these parents have a hard enough time caring for their children, I don't recommend plants b/c I know they would neglect the plants. I did have one family that was given an orchid (phal) and I explained to them how to take care of it.

Sarah

Yes... I can see where plants wouldn't be a priority... although, simple gardening might be something the children and parents could do together... such as growing zinnias or sunflowers in paper cups on a windowsill... I've heard of a few project gardens in various communities, but I'm not sure they deal with mentally challenged children or parents.

At least you were able to help one family with their Phal! I'm sure they appreciate it! That's the first, and only, orchid type I've killed so far! I had a beautiful purple flowered Phal, and I found out too late that it was planted in some type of potting soil, hidden by a layer of bark. The roots were all but gone by the time I discovered this. I now know that it pays to check the medium and roots BEFORE purchasing orchids!

I've also since cured my over-watering tendencies... I very carefully check my plants, and I usually wait a day or two if I'm not entirely certain they need water! I also have a moisture meter, but I don't trust the readings as much as I do my sense of touch.

Now, if I can just make sure they're all getting the proper amount of light... I need to price those floor lamps with all the arms!

Phals are the orchids I've killed. Those were my first try with orchids, and it took my killing two to figure out orchids. I think those died b/c of improper water and light.

As far as that family, I don't think they cared. Hahaha. Their ego got in the way, as they tried to tell me they knew how to care for them, despite they never cared for an orchid in their life. I know longer work with them, so it is possible they treated the orchid like a regular houseplant and you can imagine the result.

Sarah

The Phal I killed was my first, too... around the same time, I got an Epi radicans cutting from a friend in Florida. That one is still growing, and has 2 nice keikis that I've left attached.

The Phal did not die in vain, though... I learned some important lessons from its demise! Careful checking of roots before buying, and careful watering... and losing that plant made me really begin researching orchids, and though I've learned a lot, I'm still reading and searching out new information.

I have been brave, and just added another orchid to the collection last night! The new Oncidium I bought should arrive in a few days, bringing the total number of plants to 7!

Reading and gathering information on culture is very helpful, but I think first-hand experience is something that teaches much more! You know what they say... everything looks good on paper!

Well... at the very least, you tried to help with your patient's Phal... and all we can do is try! Life is full of choices... perhaps they'll make the right ones and that Phal will live to bloom again!