6 hours Ago By Chanelle Georgina
These delicate but gorgeous blooms may appear twice a year on a healthy orchid , but the plant may only produce them for a limited time. Experts at Gardening Know How revealed how to properly care for an orchid to encourage it to produce blooms for "months." In an informative YouTube video, the expert shares that moth orchids could bloom "up to three months at a time".
One of the best tips for ensuring the orchid grows to its fullest potential is to keep it in its original plastic pot with good drainage. The plastic pot can easily be transferred into decorated pots, but if you want to get rid of the plastic pot, the best pot to buy is a "squat pot". This is so the orchid roots can grow sideways instead of further down, but whichever pot you get, make sure it has good drainage holes.
"Light is the key to maintaining healthy plants," the expert added, with orchids preferring "bright, filtered light". Orchids should be “protected against direct sunlight”, which can otherwise burn their leaves. This is why orchids are best placed near east or south-facing windows, but a sheer curtain may be needed to help "scatter some of the light.
" On the other hand, if the orchid doesn't receive adequate light, the flower "may not bloom at all". As for watering, the orchid does best when it's watered weekly, but do make sure the soil feels dry before each watering session. If you've kept the orchid in its original plastic pot, it's also helpful to remove it from the decorative pot and put it into the kitchen sink when watering.
This allows any excess water to drain out from the plastic pot down into the kitchen sink; overwatering can lead to root rot, which needs to be avoided. The expert also recommends watering the orchid in the morning with water that is room temperature. Also, orchids favour humid environments, which you can recreate by filling a tray with a layer of gravel and adding "just enough water" to not submerge the gravel.
The orchid plant can then be placed on top of the gravel tray where the water will eventually evaporate, increasing the humidity around the plant. By following these simple orchid care tips, you can encourage the plant to produce beautiful flowers for "months" at a time..
