Orchids

Stheno

I know it's not strictly gardening, but does anyone on here have orchids?

I bought five over a couple of months more than a year ago, and miraculously they have all thrived, and bloomed multiple times.

A couple of them seem to be really growing, and it looks like there are new stems growing on them for new flowers (I know bugger all about orchids) and growing new roots. At the same time, the older leaves on them are getting yellow and newer leaves are growing.

Anyway, the few questions I have are:

1. Should they be moved into bigger pots as they grow?
2. Should I remove the older leaves?


Thanks

Prenderb

Yep - generally get the opposite effect to you. Loss of flower, not replaced. Where do you keep yours? In or out of sunlight?

Stheno

I keep them in the windowsill

bmaxi

I have two on my kitchen window, it was the only space I had and even though it is quite bright and warm, they are never out of bloom. Orchids do better if a little potbound and if you are potting on, make sure you pot into the same type of pot, i.e. don't move from a clear pot into a dense pot. I usually cut off yellow leaves and if the flower stalks start to go brown cut them back to the first bud.
I feed them once a month by standing them in a standard dilution of tomato feed because the compost is so open, if you feed them through the top it just runs through.

teddyteddy

potos/??

kylith

I got some about a month ago. I take my mum's advice of rinsing them in water that has stood overnight, and doing nothing else, and they're flourishing. By 'rinsing', I just pour the water over the roots and let it drain out the bottom of the pot immediately. Mum's had a couple of plants flowering pretty much continuously for a few years using this method.

AIUI most orchids are killed by too much care; they're evolved to grow on branches with their roots exposed and putting them in a pot of compost rots them from the bottom up.

looksee

I have a couple on my kitchen windowsill. One in particular puts out a generous flowershoot, flowers which lasts for about ... well months, then eventually die back, I cut off the shoot, give it a bit of a feed, water when I think about it, pull off any yellow leaves and let it get on with it. Its growing a great flowering branch at the moment, it had about 40 flowers on it last time - its only a small plant - but it seems to flower twice a year for about the last 4 years. I don't think you should repot it, this one hasn't been repotted and it just keeps flowering.

Oldtree

I have left mine in the same pots for years and they keep marching on and flowering.

I have them next to a south facing window but out of direct sunlight as the got singed early on. I use only rainwater with a tray under the pot which always has water in it so the bark (soil) never dries out. I use an organic ready to use liquid feed (sparingly) and they love it. I have tried to duplicate their natural setting as much as possible, however I do not mist them only clean the leaves of dust every 4-5 months.

Mfwic_47

Oldtree, where are you located in Mayo? I live in Derreen, Louisburgh. I'm buying a greenhouse and plan on heating the beds then placing my dormant orchids there until they are ready to shoot.

I retired 4-5 years ago from working in S. Florida. I had various species in the trees, patio lattice work, porch, everywhere. There I could treat them with a sort of benevolent nonchalance. Here it's a totally different ball game! I don't see Encycliae/Dendrobiae/Vandae thriving as they did in a wet/dry monsoon climate. This will be more like a project.

I have a few Phals & Dens now in bay windows. I'd like to get some Encycliae but I went to a site called something like Species specific but it appears to be dead.