Phalaenopsis or ‘moth orchids’ are one of the most popular indoor plants available. It’s common to see them in full flower on offer at everywhere from your local nursery, florist right through to the checkouts at the supermarket.
But it’s also common for that initial enchantment to lead to disappointment. They look incredible when you first take them home, but then the blooms start to fade, fall off and all you’re left with a rather sad looking bare stem and a couple of leaves.
But don’t despair! With a little bit of technique you can revive that neglected orchid slowly fading away in the corner of your desk back to the glorious state that made you pick it up in the first place.
Growing conditions
The first thing to understand is they come from the tropical and humid lowlands of Indonesia, India, South-East Asia, the Philippines and northern Australia. Given these origins, there is no surprise that these orchids thrive in warmer temperatures, with a preferred temperature range between 15 and 28 degrees. For most of Australia this means they are strictly an indoor plant.
Finding the right growing conditions at your place is as simple as finding somewhere warm, brightly lit but out of direct sunlight. Light that is too bright will burn the leaves.
While windowsills may seem ideal, be aware that glass is often the coldest part of the house overnight and prone to cold draughts. Similarly air conditioners can play havoc with your orchid.
Humidity is also a consideration. Rather than trying to keep up with ineffective misting, a simple long-term hack is to stand your orchid on a tray of pebbles filled with water. This creates an ideal mini-microclimate, and the pebbles keep the pot from sitting directly in the water, which can lead to rots and fungal problems.
Repotting
It’s a good idea to repot your phalaenopsis orchid when you get it home, as the growing media and pot it comes in may not be suitable for your conditions. Simply remove the orchid from the pot and gently tease the roots out of the potting mix. If there are any roots that are soft, wet and mushy to the touch cut them off with some clean snips, as they’ve gone rotten.
Orchids have specialised roots that won’t do well in regular potting mix, so it’s best to use specialty orchid bark mixed blend. This differs from regular potting mix due to the large size of the chunky bark used to make it.
Phalaenopsis orchids are often sold in decorative pots that don’t have drainage holes. While these look cute and are designed to catch the customers eye, they can be a death sentence for the plants. Water pools at the bottom instead of draining out into a drip tray, causing the roots to rot and eventually killing the plant. For this reason it’s better to repot into something with drainage holes
There are two easy options for the beginner grower; either a terracotta orchid pot with holes for roots around the outside, or the clear plastic pots with lots of drainage holes. Both will let water drain out freely, and ensure plenty of air circulation around the roots which these orchids love.
Once you’ve repotted, take the orchid outside and give it a long soak to settle everything in and rehydrate the roots.
If your orchid is growing well, anticipate needing to repot every 12-18 months as the mix will break down over time. You’ll often see the thick, fleshy roots creeping their way up and out of pots. Don’t be concerned, this is a sign your orchid is loving the environment in the pot you’ve provided.
Ongoing maintenance
Orchids do well with regular, weakened applications of specialist fertiliser. An orchid fertiliser that’s high in potassium will encourage flowering, and is best applied every three weeks. Feeding can be slowed over winter and during cooler weather, when the plant isn’t actively growing.
After the flowers are finished if the spike holding them becomes withered, yellow or brown it should be removed as it won’t give you any more flowers. Do this by cutting off at the base of the plant. Removing the spent spike allows the plat to put energy into root development and growth, resulting in more flowers the next time it happens.
Any indoor plant will accumulate dust on its leaves over time, and phalaenopsis are no exception. A dampened rag or paper towel every few months will keep the leaves shiny, and prevent the dust interfering with the leaves natural ability to make energy from the sun.
Do you grow orchids? Why not share some of your growing tips in the comments section below?
Also read: How to save money in the garden
Care for Phalaenopsis
1. WATERING – They do not like to sit in a saucer of water at the bottom. Most people kill these orchids by overwatering them. Most ceramic pots you have the orchids plastic pot sitting in, will have no holes in it so should only be used AFTER the plastic pot has drained fully and when you might take them into the house for display. Otherwise, I would not keep my orchid in it. So, to water the orchid, you simply take the plastic pot, put it under the tap and drench the pot NOT the leaves. Avoid getting any water on the leaves. Also water it in the mornings. Then let it drain fully for an hour before you put the plastic pot back into any decorative ceramic pot you may be using. I do not use these ceramic pots at all and basically toss them away! Frequency will depend on the potting mix. If it is chips of pine bark then every second day in summer. If it is in sphagnum moss then every third day in summer. Frequency will also depend on where you locate the orchid. Do NOT let them dry out. Their medium should not dry out totally, but they should definitely not be sitting in a bowl of water either. My orchids I have repotted them out of the sphagnum moss they came in, and now I have them in a mixture of small to medium orchid pine bark chips with some perlite mixed in, with a small amount of sphagnum moss mixed through the chips and the perlite. A tiny bit of sphagnum mixed into this is okay. Just remember if you adopt this mix, then watering frequency becomes more. I like this mix because it gives the roots more space to grow and does not cause the roots to rot as the straight sphagnum moss can do.
2. LOCATION – Ideally these orchids like a warm even temperature. If you have a shaded pergola in the front or rear of your house then that would be ideal. NO DIRECT SUNLIGHT! They also need to experience a drop in temperature to initiate flowering, so under a fairly light pergola in our winter is sufficient. Mine are under a north facing pergola (so warm), no direct sun and they are never without flowers. Queensland has an ideal climate for these orchids.
3. They should be in clear plastic pots as the subterraneous roots can be seen easily and also the roots will photosynthesise, as evidenced by their green colour. The white ceramic pot should only be used, if at all, to house the plastic pot when you bring them into the house. Also the clear plastic pot can show you whether the roots below the medium are healthy. Remember, like I said before, most people overwater them and ‘kill them with perceived kindness’.
4. Buy some fish emulsion or seaweed fertilizer, and use it at a weak rate of 2ml per litre of water once every two weeks in the warmer months and every month during the cooler months. Spray with a mister hand sprayer onto the leaves IN THE MORNINGS ONLY! This should be the only time that you get water on the leaves.
5. I also use a great pellet fertilizer called Nutricote & Magrimax. Sprinkle a half a teaspoon of the granules evenly on the potting at the top of the pot. I do this every 3 to 6 months. I get this from Fame Orchid supplies at 119 Boundary Road, Thornlands in Brisbane. Phone number 3206 4385. This fertilizer is brilliant!
6. You will need some bendable wire to support the flower spikes as they get longer.
7. When the flowering has finished, locate a node on the old flower spike and cut just above that, about 1.5cm above is sufficient. What can happen, just like pruning a shrub, the plant may throw another flower spike from the node.
8. I often take a flowering plant inside to enjoy the beautiful blooms. I will put it near a window (NO DIRECT SUNLIGHT) or on top of the fridge as it is warm up there (have a feel…..it’s not cold up there!)
9. PESTS – Not too many to worry about. The main one is Mealy Bugs which are white hairy insects about 2mm to 3mm in length, with an elongated oval shape. The crawl into the leaf crevices, or onto the backs of the leaves or even onto the flowers. They are sap suckers so get rid of them quickly. I use a chemical called Confidor but this is a little hard to get. Yates Baythroid also works. If you only have a few Phalaenopsis, then you can use your hose on fan spray to blast these off your plant. Remember do this in the morning so the leaves have a chance to dry out through the day.
The other pest that you will encounter is Scale insects which tend to get on the underside of leaves making them difficult to spot. Regular inspection every few weeks is needed. If you notice a black, sooty appearance on some of your leaves, this is generally a dead giveaway to the presence of Scale insects. The Scale insects are also sap suckers but excrete a sugary substance which encourages the growth of a sooty mould which is harmless to the plant, but doesn’t look good. To get rid of the Scale insects, use a water moistened cloth to wipe the leaves thoroughly. Remember to wash the cloth between EVERY leaf you do as not doing this will spread the scales to other plants. Even having half a dozen cloths and soak in Methylated Spirits AFTER each leaf, will guarantee that you kill the Scales. Make sure the cloths have dried thoroughly of the Methylated Spirits before using that cloth on another leaf. Some people use isopropyl alcohol on cotton buds to wipe off the scales but this is a quite lengthy process.