A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 Orchids

Anyone have any advice on care of orchids? I would love to have one, but don't have much knowledge of them.
Thanks,
Gail

http://www.thegardenhelper.com/orchid.html

http://www.thegardenhelper.com/BBorchid.html

hey gardeningmoma ....

I 2nd the motion........I want one too..

Bill, it is so manly of you to guide us around here...Love the eagle too.. I have one on my wall for many years..Family got mad when I removed it ,It is still up.

dodge

I am tempted to get one everytime I see them. But I am chicken with feathers and everything.

Thank you I'm still a little nervous about getting an orchid, but I've done so well with my other plants. Maybe the "Easter Bunny" will bring me one!!!
Gail

When I first ventured into the wilds of Orchid Territory, I found that Trader Joe's (specialty grocery store) had a great selection of easy to care for species, and at great prices. Which is great, because I am on Phaleonopsis #3!
Life is short...dive right in, kids!

i have a cattleya orchid that my mom gave me. it has only bloomed once when we got it, not counting the flowers that were on it when we bought it. aperantly cattleyas are hard to make bloom outside of a greenhouse. that's why i'm going to put it into a terrarium (mini-greenhouse)

all in all, its very easy to care for. it grows like crazy, just won't bloom. its got all kinds of new leaves and roots and its almost overflowing out of its pot. i just water it when it looks thirsty and use a balanced orchid fertilizer (20-20-20) at half-strength every time i water (i keep a milk jug of fertilizer water made up all the time for both my orchids, and african violets)

There is a TON of Orchid info on the web! Just do a Google search and you'll learn TONS of information! There are also a number of good books as well.

Tom

i've got a phaleonopsis. got it as a spur of the moment impulse buy 4 years ago. at the time, i knew two things about orchids: 1) they're gorgeous 2) they're hard to care for.

they're supposed to be so hard to care for, right?! pshaw, pshaw!! this one is still going strong and it regularly gets neglected (i work too much).

if you want an orchid, go out and get one!! the phal is pretty easy to care for and that one is the one i usually see in the stores.

i've got it in some spahngum moss in one of the ceramic 'orchid' pots (the kind that have the air holes in it). it's in the kitchen on the windowsill of the west-facing window. it gets bright light all afternoon. it's indirect, tho, due to the house next door blocks the direct sunlight. it's done well there, so that's where it's staying.

that's one thing i've learned about orchids - they're picky about their light.

I suggest also getting a paph orchid. Phals are nice but need cooler temps in the fall to set bloom. I got My paph to bloom this year! SWEET!

Paphs are GREAT!

Tom

i would have to say that, i at one time, thought they were for the experts... so, i refrained from purchasing any... about two years ago, i picked up a phal for 12 bucks.... am up to a little over 40 orchids now...!
they need bright, indirect light (such as in an east or south facing window), a humid environment (i have cups of water set-out at intervals between orchids), and somewhat careful but regular watering ( i water mine once a week, in the mornings...).
as "luck" would have it, phals are the ones that i have the most problems with... i have only had one survive long term in my house, while i have cattleyas, an epidendrum and oncidiums that i have had almost two yrs now.... just got a giant cymbidium a couple months back... so far, is doing great!

i wasn't aware of the cooler temp issue - how much cooler in fall??

what's the full name of the paph??

About 10-15 degrees F. cooler.

My paph is a Supersuk "Eureka" AM/AOS x Raisin pie "Hsinying" x Sib

Tom

thx!!

Here's my Cattleya "White Diamond" that bloomed about a week ago. (I should have taken it off the crowded table before I took the picture!)

My poor dining table is SOOO full of plants these days, but as soon as my spring seedlings are ready to harden off, the Tropicals are going back into my mini-greenhouse! They seem to be happy on the table, but I'd like for my dining room to look like something other than a plant nursery!

I didn't think I'd be any good at Orchids either, but a friend started giving them to me last fall, & I've had real good luck with them! I think the main thing is to not let them dry out, but NEVER let them SIT in water. (The bark or porous rock that they come in will hold the adequate amount of moisture that they need.)

I water mine every 7 days, by setting them down in a pan of rain water, enough to cover the bark/rock, & leave them there for about 10 minutes, then take them out & let the excess water drain out. Once a month, the day after I give them their short water-soak, I "dip" them again, in Orchid food water.

Orchids like to be misted, but I don't have the time to do it every day. I read somewhere that having a bowl of water near to where the plants are, will provide adequate humidity for them, & that has been working fine, for me.