Watering with ice cubes?

[sashaeffer]

Subject came up on a Google news feed for indoor plants, not specifically indoor palms but got me to thinking about this since over watering is the #1 killer of indoor palms.

I have done it with Orchids and occasionally with potted palms but not as my mainstay watering program.

 

Anyone here that has done this long term? and how did your palms do?

[palmsOrl]

I wouldn't ever engage in this practice with any of my palms or other plants personally.  The ice itself contacting plant tissue would likely cause tissue death (especially in tropical plants and even in temperate plants in active growth and not dormant) and the cold melt water would probably shock the roots.  Best to water a plant with water as close to ambient temperature as possible, unless one is watering palms and other plants in pots during hot weather, in which case some cooler (like room temperature) water might be refreshing and beneficial to cool down overheated roots.  This might especially apply to palms in black plastic nursery pots in full sun.  I know my Cocos in black plastic pots look way healthier now that they are situated so the actual pots are shaded during the hottest part of the day.  It only took days to notice a difference in the Cocos general appearance after they were moved from all day scorching sun to partial shade (especially the lower part of the palms and the pots).

So to sum it up, I say, NO ice. 

[Fusca]

1 hour ago, palmsOrl said:

I say, NO ice.

This is how I order my Coca Cola at the restaurant.   And I had the same thoughts as you did regarding watering with the ice cubes.  

[Silas_Sancona]

While i limit my consumption, Gotta have ice when i treat myself to a Coke or other soda. Never on the plants, esp Orchids..

[Allen]

Water with ice cubes - NO!  Water with slightly warm or room temp water.

[Dimovi]

Yes for orchids, no for palms

 

[palmsOrl]

19 hours ago, Dimovi said:

Yes for orchids, no for palms

 

So it seems to work for you huh?  I know that Phalaenopsis orchids (it was kind of a gimmick really) being watered with ice cubes was "a thing" at some point within the last 10-15 years, can't remember exactly when.  

I suppose if a setup was designed in such a way that the ice cubes do not actually contact plant tissues (living Phalaenopsis plant cells will rupture and necrotize if they freeze), it may work if the (cold!) melt water trickles down over the roots.  Still, this just seems like a good way to shock a tropical plant, including Phalaenopsis and/or a good way to induce pathogenesis within the crown or root system.

As someone who currently keeps five grocery store Phalaenopsis I have accumulated over the years, I would again emphasize, no ice!  That said (and I know I am digressing here), in my experience, while species Phalaenopsis (it is large genera) vary widely in their specific temperature range preferences, Phalaenopsis hybrids seem to have their blooming triggered by a drop in overnight temperatures to the ~50-62F range and indeed, the plants themselves appear to both look their best and grow the fastest in the fall and spring here during more humid periods when daytime temperatures are warm and nights are muggy and cool.  Thus, for indoor growers of Phalaenopsis hybrids, watering with ice cubes may provide a little "coolness" and induce blooming, if it doesn't freeze part of the plant or rot the roots first.

One more thing, no watering palms with ice!  In my dad's former neighborhood, there was a family who suddenly became wealthy but wanted to stay where they had been for so long, so they had a very large home built on the property and the yard lushly landscaped with typical tropical staples seen in the warmer parts of town.  Well, several years in a row, for the month of December, for Christmas, the homeowner would have truckloads of snow delivered and have his yard completely blanketed in about 18" of the white stuff.  That's when you know you have money to burn! 

He had to have it redone about once per week here in December, but December being our cloudiest month and second coolest on average, there was still a couple inches left by the time he had it redone each week.  It was incredible.  Of course, he did not have the palms and other landscaping covered in the snow (the the ground right around them was), but the effects on the ground temperature and air temperature around the plants were very apparent.  The plants spent the whole month looking wilted and droopy, but I don't recall observing any suffering long term effects.  The specific palm species I recall observing is Phoenix roebelenii, which took on a flaccid appearance with desiccated-looking fronds while being surrounded by all that snow.  One would think a continuous blanket of that much snow for a month would freeze the ground.  It was really cool.

-Michael

[piping plovers]

On 9/1/2020 at 8:56 AM, sashaeffer said:

Subject came up on a Google news feed for indoor plants, not specifically indoor palms but got me to thinking about this since over watering is the #1 killer of indoor palms.

I have done it with Orchids and occasionally with potted palms but not as my mainstay watering program.

 

Anyone here that has done this long term? and how did your palms do?

I have not tried that with palms.  I have always questioned that ice cold water on orchids.  My assumption is that since that with all this mass marketing of  grocery store/box store orchids to the general public over past 20 yrs they needed an approachable and easy plan to sell the idea that anyone can grow them.  Orchids do have that intimidating reputation for fussy care.  Since overwatering orchids is a surefire way of killing them quickly; marketers probably assumed that the cold water damage to the plant was less risky than overwatering the orchids.  Reminds me of medical treatments, the side effects may be harmful but the general goal is that the benefit will outweigh the risk.

[piping plovers]

On 9/4/2020 at 4:11 PM, palmsOrl said:

Well, several years in a row, for the month of December, for Christmas, the homeowner would have truckloads of snow delivered and have his yard completely blanketed in about 18" of the white stuff.  That's when you know you have money to burn! 

LOL.  This gave me a good laugh!!

[palmsOrl]

9 hours ago, piping plovers said:

LOL.  This gave me a good laugh!!

Indeed!  Made quite the spectacle, but as a 30 year old I restrained myself from skipping through the snow (though I wanted to).

[Frond-friend42]

Running a hot shower periodically in your bathroom and letting your orchids mist in there seems like a good idea recommended to me. The ice thing didn't go over well with my orchids. I only ever had 2 or 3 orchids but different things I tried with them didn't go well.  Some day I will try orchids again.

For palms...shower misting....?....i doubt it, but I'd love to here about if someone does it with some palms, with satisfactory results.

[RogerMars]

It's interesting to come across discussions about different watering methods for indoor plants. While the thread is a bit older, the topic of using ice cubes for watering is quite intriguing. Understandably, overwatering can be a concern, especially for indoor palms.