Orchid care tips
They’re a popular Christmas gift. If you received one here are some expert tips to keep it looking good
Have you been lucky enough to receive a beautiful orchid this Christmas? Are you now panicking over what to do with it? Well, don’t! It’s not too tricky and will give you lots of pleasure if you follow a few simple tips.
Firstly, identify which type of orchid you have as this will help you choose the right spot for it. Even the cheapest versions should come with a name label telling you the genus, or group, of orchids it belongs to. If you buy from a specialist grower, it should have the varietal name too, plus growing instructions. Know your group Orchids are split into three different temperature groups. The coolest types like to drop down to 10C (50F) on a winter’s night and would suit the coolest room in the house, such as an unheated bedroom. These include nobile types of dendrobiums, which have clusters of flowers along the length of their canes, and cymbidiums, popular winter-flowering orchids with long strap-like leaves.
The intermediate temperature range orchids require a drop to 12C (54F) in winter, so a slightly warmer room would suit these, which include many Oncidium types, often marketed as ‘Cambria’, Brassia (spider
orchids) and Miltonia (pansy orchids). Warmth-loving orchids suit our modern homes well, enjoying the centrally-heated atmosphere. If your thermostat is set at 15C (59F) or above, then the most popular choice for a houseplant orchid is the phalaenopsis or moth orchid. Other types such as
paphiopedilum (slipper orchids) and hard-cane dendrobiums will also grow happily with phalaenopsis. Light, water and humidity Now you hopefully know which gorgeous orchid you’ve been given and found the right room for it, it’s time to consider light levels, watering and humidity.
Choose a place where the plant will get a good level of light for the winter months, direct sun is not a problem as leaves won’t burn in winter. Give it shade from the brightest rays for the summer months as this is when sun burn is more likely to occur. A windowsill is fine but don’t trap any orchid between the window and curtains on cold nights as this can chill the plant.
Create humidity for your new orchid as the house can have a dry atmosphere, especially during winter when the heating is on. Have a little water sprayer to hand and gently mist the leaves and any aerial roots that have grown over the side of the pot. Do this each morning, if you can, then the moisture will evaporate throughout the day. Take care to avoid water collecting in new leaf shoots or in the crown of a phalaenopsis where the new leaves grow, otherwise this can cause a rot which can kill the plant.
The orchid’s watering regime is something that confuses people the most and where things can go wrong. Keep it simple. Wait until the orchid’s compost appears dry and the pot feels lighter before watering. Give it a good soaking, pouring water through from the top and allowing it to drain away. You can do this by pouring from the tap or a jug, or dunking in a bucket, but avoid standing the orchid in water permanently or for a long period of time as this will rot the roots.
Many of the orchids we grow as houseplants, including the one you’ve been given as a gift, are descendants of species that grow in the rainforests around the world. They would naturally be growing on tree branches and drenched with water on a regular basis by rainstorms. In between showers the roots would dry out and water would drain away easily, so this is what we’re trying to recreate for our home-grown orchids. Water well then allow to dry out before watering the next time. If in doubt always err on the drier side and
leave it for a few days before checking again. What to expect Your orchid should flower for several weeks, or in the case of the phalaenopsis, several months, but what happens when it finishes? Most orchids have storage organs called pseudobulbs. A new one of these bulbs has to be grown each year in order to flower, so once the flowers have finished, trim off the dead, brown flower stem and watch as a new leaf shoot emerges from the base, growing into the new bulb that will make next season’s flower stem. The old bulbs won’t flower again but they give the plant energy to grow so don’t remove them. Phalaenopsis don’t produce pseudobulbs, so can flower at any time of year and re-flower from the same stem by trimming it back to one of its eyes before all the existing blooms have completely dropped.