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Anyone can grow orchids in the
home without living in the
tropics or having the luxury of
a greenhouse. Today,
houseplants are a regular part
of home decoration. If you have
every successfully grown a
houseplant, or enjoyed a
flowering potted plant, you can
grow orchids. The good news is
there are plenty of options to
give yourself a beautiful
display of flowering orchids
year round. Hint: Orchids grown
in the home during the colder
months will respond wonderfully
well to being summered outdoors
in a protected area. This will
also extend the range of plant
selections available to you. Be
sure to read the AOS's companion
sheet Orchids in the Garden
and on the Patio.
Light
No
flowering plant will do well
without sufficient light. In
the home, where most available
light is incidental (that is, at
an angle, and therefore less
intense), plants will need to be
fairly close to an east or west,
or lightly shaded south,
window. A north window will
rarely provide adequate light.
If light is too intense in a
southern exposure, a sheer
curtain could be hung to diffuse
the light. Extra hours of light
will not entirely compensate for
poor light quality. Indeed,
extending day length
artificially to more than 16
hours can be detrimental to the
plants' health and often will
prevent flowering.
Temperature
The
plants will be comfortable where
you are comfortable. Typical
home temperatures of 55 to 60 F
at night and 75 F during the day
are fine. Guard against
excessively low or high
temperatures immediately
adjacent to glass windows. Some
leeway for seasonal fluctuations
is allowed.
Humidity
Rugs, drapes and some furniture
act as giant wicks that absorb
the home's humidity, as do
heating and air-conditioning
systems. Also, it is not
advisable to have the home's
interior be too wet to
accommodate the plants.
Solutions: Group plants to take
advantage of their collective
transpiration (exhaled moisture)
or place them on gravel-filled
humidity trays to raise the
humidity to 50 percent.
Watering
Care
must be taken to balance the
rapid surface drying that can
take place in the home with
plants' lower metabolic
processes resulting from lower
light. Each particular type of
orchid will retain its basic
water needs, whether for
moisture or periodic dryness.
The home grower also needs to
give thought to the logistics of
watering. You can carry plants
to the sink or even outdoors
(when weather allows), or water
them in place and remove
excessive water so the
containers do not sit in water.
Fertilizer
Fertilize regularly at a low
dosage of approximately
one-quarter strength with a
fertilizer appropriate to the
potting mix in which your plants
are grown. Fertilize less often
during the winter.
A
Selection of Plants
Angraecums
Dwarf Madagascaran species,
fragrant at night; bright light.
Cattleya Alliance
Hybrids and Species
Choose miniature types less than
10 inches tall; bright light of
southern exposure is best.
Dendrobiums
Dwarf phalaenopsis types, or
higher-altitude miniatures;
bright light at south window
required.
Oncidiums Many
types available in flower, best
if smaller growing; bright
light.
Paphiopedilums
Lady's-slipper orchids grow well
under home conditions, giving
long-lasting blooms; provide
African-violet conditions.
Phalaenopsis
Moth orchids are absolutely the
number-one best orchid
houseplant; provide
African-violet conditions.
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