Nurturing an Orchid Plant
Orchids, like all living forms, need care for their growth and health. Raising an orchid plant at home or in gardens for commercial benefit, both require the caregiver to understand hindrances that thwart the normal growth and health of the plant. A number of things need to be given care, commonly including: blooming of the plant, using a suitable fertilizer, preventing the plant from fading out, health of leaves, cutting and trimming, and repotting. Though the nurturing needs of an orchid plant depends on which species you are growing, some measures are common to proper caring for orchids in general.
Blooming of Orchids
If your orchid plant is experiencing problems in maturing to bloom in effulgence, the most probable reasons are less than required exposure to light, improper potting, retention of excess water at the roots, and/or absence of optimum level of temperature change. To allow for the best plant bloom, place your orchid plant near the window to get enough light.
If sufficient artificial light is provided, you can place the plant anywhere you want. Repot the orchid plant if you come to detect signs of excessive retention of water at the roots. About ten degrees of daily temperature variation is commendable for proper growth of most orchid species. Water rich in minerals is not suitable for the plant; instead use distilled water or just clear rainwater.
Suitable Fertilizers
An orchid plant, in general, does not respond well to urea-based fertilizers. The use of suitable fertilizer depends on more than one factor including temperature, sunlight, and which particular location you are living in. Get your orchid a fertilizer that is free from urea, if you are unsure.
Fading Out of the Plant
Two types of signs are indicative of fading out of the orchid plant: (1) the leaves develop wrinkles and (2) buds grow yellowish and start falling. Wrinkling of leaves is caused mainly by either insufficient watering or by excessive watering. Check the roots of the plant to see if excess of watering has turned them brown and unusually soft. If so, repot the orchid plant and decrease the frequency of watering.
If lack of water has left them white and firm, provide more water daily. In case the orchid plant is shedding buds that have grown yellow and weak, the amount of water, light, or temperature conditions provided to the plant need be revised.
Remove the plant from the vicinity of sources of heat, placing it in a place where it can get optimum intensity of light. Take care to position the plant in a room with no harmful chemical fumes (paints etc.). Keep from overwatering the plant.
Repotting an Orchid Plant
Repotting an orchid plant requires different considerations in case of different species. As a general rule, repot the plant after a year or two when the roots break the medium. Carefully remove the old mix from the plant roots, rinse the roots, and place it in a new pot. You can cut the hollow or excessively soft parts of the root: they are dead anyway.
So how do you make more of your new favorite plant?
Orchid Shows
Rainwater is best to use, maintaining a room temperature.
The Red orchid scientific name is Phalaenopsis corningiana. Most familiar varieties of orchids come from the tropics with large and beautiful flowers that suit the decorative taste of admirers and also of florists who use them in bouquets and corsages. However, outside of the tropics, orchids are not exactly an easy garden plant. Santa Barbara Orchid Estate sells white Laelia anceps for 0 or less. Maintaining orchids is especially hard as they cannot stand cold temperatures so, even in real warm summers one must ensure that the orchid they posses is at room temperature and receives sunlight.
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