As you probably know by now, I am a flower freak.. I just love flowers, like a elderly lady I care a lot about my flowers and check on them every day. One of my favorite flowers is the Orchid, I have about 10 white ones. I’ve never thrown out an orchid after it’s done blooming because if you care for it right and get to know how they like it they will bloom again and again. Here are my tips on how I care for my orchids, not everyone does it the same way but this is my way :)
In our office we have the best light, the windows are facing north/east and my orchids love the light there. They do not like direct sun and the leafs of the orchids burn easy, that is why it’s important to have them in a light window but no direct sun on them.
I do not water orchids, I give them a “bath” once every other week or third week. This is a tropical flower and they are used to long dry times and heavy short rain days, so I figure that these “baths” suit them well. I place them all in my sink rinsing them with water and then let them stand in deep water for about 5min. Then the roots of the orchids absorb water and use that water for the next dry period, almost like a camel ;)
I also clean out all the pots, they usually get green and mossy. I use glass pots for my orchids so the roots of the plants get day light on them as well. Do not use any soap or dish washing liquid cleaning the pots, just hot water.
When the orchids are done absorbing water in their roots they look like the image above. You can see on your orchids if they are missing water, then the roots are dried out and wrinkly. The leafs can also look sad and wrinkly, that’s a sign of too little daylight and/or too little water. Give the flower a bath and place them in a lighter window, but again – no direct sun.
My little secret is also to wrap the bottom of the flower in plastic film, to make it like a closed green house. Because the orchids are tropical they like the humid and their roots grow more and that’s a good sign that the orchids will bloom again. After I complete wrapping the bottom of the orchids in plastic film I place them in the clean pot again and then in their favorite light window.
My orchids bloom every three to five months, now it’s usually orchid season and I have started to see some new spikes coming up. When they have fully bloomed they get to come out of my office and I place them in a nicer spot, like the living-room or hallway :)
Good luck with your orchids!
Love,
L
Skrifa Innlegg