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15 Orchid growing tips for experienced growers
Tip #1 Use chameleons and tree frogs as insect pest eaters.
Those are great additions for your greenhouse, they are ecologically friendly and the insects never get a chance to reproduce any more. Just let them wonder freely in the orchid greenhouse.
ü Don’t touch them too much though, they don’t like it.
ü Mist the orchids from water, as chameleons and tree frogs cannot lap up water from a dish.
Tip #2 Always use two labels for the orchids
Sometimes, the little helpers might move them around and you might get a little confused about the names of the orchids. You can bury one label at the base of the planning pot when you repot the orchid or on the side of the pot, underneath the potting compost.
Tip #3 Keep your instruments away from children
We all can get caught up in using all kinds of instruments when working with our orchids. One thing you should consider though: if you have children, they might be attracted by the tools or solutions you work with and this can be a dangerous situation. Therefore, always check if the tools are placed well in a place where the children have no access (all bleaching solutions, sharp cutting tools or anything that can be dangerous to them). This way, you will be able to share your passion to your children and keep them safe at he same time.
Tip #4 Quarantine your new orchids
When purchasing a new orchid, place it in a separate area from the other orchids, so you can check it thoroughly and observe it for few weeks.
§ Make sure the place has enough light and a good level of humidity.
§ Treat the new orchid with preventative insecticide solution in order to make sure no insect pests are introduced in the orchid garden along with the new plant.
Tip #5 Buy some colored electrical tape
This is a great way to label your orchids, according to their special needs. For example you could use a blue electrical tape for marking the orchids that need extra watering, yellow for the ones that should be placed in a bright light and red for the orchids that were determined to have an incipient scale infestation. Well, you will see how easy is to identify your orchids, especially if you have a large number of specimens.
Tip #6 Stakes
There are a variety of stakes that you can buy for your orchids. Here are 2 great ideas of what you can use as a stake, and they are reliable and have a natural look:
- Thin branches taken from a tree are great for maintaining a natural aspect f the inflorescence of your orchid and you can cut it in the desired length.
- You can purchase from the grocery store bamboo shish-kabob skewers. They have a sharpened end, and the 10” length makes them ideal for large orchid that need support.
Tip #7 Easy inventory with colored plant clips
Plant clips are essential for you to attach the orchids to the stake for keeping them upright and to display their blooming beautifully. You can find plant clips in many funny shapes and colors, like butterflies or bees, but the fact is you can use them smartly for another thing too. You can use the plant clip in order to indicate the color of the flower your orchid will grow.
§ Attach the plant clips on the rim of the pot or on the stake.
§ Red plant clip means that your orchid will grow a red flower.
§ This is a good method for you to manage easier the monthly inventory, without mentioning that it looks great!
Tip #8 Use hanging baskets for your Dendrobium orchids
Dendrobium orchids are a tall orchid species. It is recommended to plant them in small pots, but they grow kid of heavy in time. You could try to plant them in wooden orchid baskets; this will remove the possibility that the orchid might fall over and the staking problem as well.
§ Find a nice place to hang it and voila, problem solved!
Tip #9 Use your own colored code when it comes to spray bottles
We know that sometimes working with all kind of spray bottles might be kind of confusing. You have one with plain water, one for fungicide, one for insecticide, bleach and so on…
Well here is a nice idea that will help you work great with your spray bottles, without fearing that you might spray the wrong thing on the orchids in a moment of distraction. You can purchase from a garden centre spray bottles with different colors and you can use your own color code for distinguishing what the bottles contain: blue for water or red for insecticide.
Tip #10 Use biodegradable insect killer
This is a great formula for creating your own biodegradable insecticide, effective for any kind of garden, not only for orchid growers. Ingredients:
§ Regular spray bottle;
§ Water;
§ ¼ cup of liquid dish soap;
§ Use 1 teaspoon of liquid dish soap for a gallon of water.
This formula will cover the breathing pores of the insects and kill it.
Tip #11 Use bamboo skewers for determining the watering level of the medium
You can successfully use bamboo skewers from the grocery store to determine either the orchid needs watering or not. If the skewer is longer than the depth of the potting medium, it’s great.
§ Insert the bamboo skewer in the medium.
§ When you consider that it is the time for watering the orchid, take out ht skewer from the medium. If the bamboo skewer is dry, than it’s the right time to water your orchid.
§ If the skewer is wet, you should wait until it will be dry.
Tip #12 Growing Phragmipedium Hybrids
Phrags don’t have a good reaction if they become dry and you will have to maintain the potting compost moist all the time. You can do that if you will follow our advice:
§ Set the pot in a dish filled with water;
§ The watering should follow the normal schedule;
§ Remove the water from the dish and add fresh water once a week, in order to avoid salt buildup.
Tip #13 Water the orchids with room-temperature water
This is a caution measure taken in order to avoid any shock to the orchids. It is recommended to use room temperature water, especially if you grow your orchids outdoors or in greenhouses during the cold season.
§ If the water is too cold, it might cause the appearance of brown spots on the leaves of your orchids.
§ Consider the fact that those spots cannot be removed.
§ All you have to do is prepare the water the night before watering if you intend to water the orchid in the morning. Let the water sit.
Tip #14 Find out all you need to know about an orchid before actually purchasing one
You must read and surf the Internet before you pay a lot of money on an orchid genera that might not even survive your conditions. There are so many types of orchids that it would be better to check which one can adapt to your growing conditions before you buy it. Make sure you know the difference between the types of orchids you want to buy and see which one could grow nicely in your greenhouse.
Tip #15 Use Diatomaceous Earth (DE) for prevention of pest infestation
DE is first of all ecologically safe for the environment, and insects are unable to develop a resistance to it. It destroys mainly slugs and snails, but is very effective with insects as well. It is composed from broken silica cell walls of micro algae, and kills the insects by penetrating their hard exoskeleton and causing them a huge loss of internal fluids.
