Have you ever wondered if orchids were hard to grow and every time you pass by them in the garden center you're so tempted to buy one? And....you know you'd love to have maybe 3 or 4??
Well I intend to try and get you to be an orchid lover. The rules are.....orchids need a shady place to live....like hanging from low tree branches or if you have an area by a pool that is shady or a porch. In the wild they will be seen anchored high up in tree limbs.
They do need a liquid fertilizer every other week during the warmer months. They won't need fertilizer at all during our cooler times of the year. Water them every few days in the warmer months unless it rains and Mother Nature will get that job done for you.
When they are blooming and you want to bring them inside.....you can.....just check them for bugs and enjoy them indoors in a bright but not sunny place inside your home. We really enjoy having a few of our orchids indoors. They will still last quite a while showing off their pretty flowers.
Where they grow in the wild they can be seen anchored to tree limbs or a branch angle. They get their moisture from Mother Nature's rain or even the fog. While we were in Costa Rica recently we saw lots of them way up in the trees and they were blooming and were doing just fine. The problem is they don't get the fertilizer up there.....so their leaves can look a little yellow and not as prolific as the ones we can grow with good care.
My favorites are Cattleyas, Dendrobiums, Phalaenopsis.
At our home Tom has built a beautiful shade house for ours but they are only inside when winter comes and cold weather wants to damage them. When the weatherman says winter is here and temperatures will hit 40 degrees....inside they go! If not you can just kiss them goodbye. Right now we are putting all of ours outside in a shady area on shelves and also many will be hanging from 4 of our large ligustrum trees.
