Arranging orchid culture and its jobs by season is a convenient way to ensure that your orchids receive the proper care at the right time. Becoming able to understand your plants’ growth cycles creates a connection with the natural world and makes you a better grower. Because the flowering and the growth of the plant they are able […]

If you have bought or were lucky to receive an orchid as a holiday gift, you are about to enter the world of growing these great plants! Water How often you water will depend upon the type of orchid and the potting medium. In this issue, we are specifically addressing Moth Orchids, or Phalaenopsis; the most […]

How do I feed my orchid? Orchids need to be fed regularly. Growers advise using a “balanced” fertilizer such as 20-20-20 that includes all “necessary trace elements.” Regardless of the fertilizer formulation you choose to use, it should have little or no urea. If you are not sure of what fertilizer to use, you can usually use […]

So where should I be cutting the spike? All of the more commonly available orchids, only Phalaenopsis (the moth orchid) will re-bloom from its old spike. Phalaenopsis will usually re-bloom given a little extra care. When the last flower fades, you can leave the spike (stalk) on and it will still continue flowering but the stalk gets […]

I am beginning orchid grower and have only recently purchased my first orchid from the local farm and garden supply. Having heard that orchids can grow in trees, I hang the plant in a tree in the backyard. It is strange to look at, with its leathery leaves and thickened stems, but from an unfamiliar sheath at […]

Temperatures between 10° to 27° C tend to be perfect for orchids, however on occasions the brief periods of temperatures above 138 C can drop even into the 0 C, and it will not harm most orchids as long as no frost forms on the leaves. Cold injury includes damage from temperatures above and below freezing. […]

Caterpillars, the childish stages of moths and butterflies, can make significant damage to orchid plants. One of the common garden pests known as chewing insects, which includes caterpillars, beetles and some worms, caterpillars are voracious feeders and can make a great deal of damage to the flowers and leaves of an orchid in a short period of […]

It can be heartbreaking to watch helplessly because long-awaited orchid buds brown, die and fall instead of becoming those much-anticipated flowers. Bud blast, when buds become drier and smaller and finally fall from an otherwise healthy plant, may occur through any of a number of causes. Buds are the most sensitive part of an orchid, and […]

Take Precautions To Prevent This Fungus from endangering Winter Flowers A fungal disease affecting many different types of herbaceous and woody plants, botrytis strikes during cool, damp weather in areas where bad air circulation exists. On orchids, the disease, caused by Botrytis cinerea, causes unpleasant brown spotting of blooms. The fungus most often affects Phalaenopsis and […]

This blog we will continue talking about orchid ailment called Black Rot. When the weather is rainy or damp for extended periods, A danger to orchids called black rot can quickly make damage badly to an entire plant if left unchecked. Black Rot is caused by one or both of the fungi Pythium ultimum and […]