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The Proper Way of Resting Orchids
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Orchids require resting time every year. The particular time for this depends on the species, but for most orchids it should begin some time in the fall and continue well into winter. You need to treat plants differently at this time than you would during their exuberant growth periods (spring and summer usually). This is an often-overlooked part of growing orchids successfully.
A good general practice is to give your orchids rest from November through the middle of February. You do this by lowering the temperature of the room where they are kept, and by restricting water.
For orchids from the tropics, maintain the air temp at approximately 60 or 65. For species originating in colder locales, you can lower the temperature to around 45 degrees.
During this time, provide your plants just enough water to keep them from shriveling. The bulk of the moisture should be supplied by misting or by taking measures to keep the air humid. From time to time, though, you should poke down into the soil and examine the stem, roots and rooting medium of your plants. If these are beginning to dry out you should water them directly.
A few species will continue to grow during the winter. These will demand somewhat more water than those that truly go dormant. If you see new shoots emerging, though, try to avoid wetting them or they else they might rot.
Some orchids are deciduous. This means they will drop their leaves after they have finished their growing for the year. You need to give these as much sun and light during their rest period as you can. This is to allow their pseudobulbs to ripen, letting them grow stronger and flower more freely.
Proper orchid care is not that hard or mysterious. But to prevent problems will require more detailed information than can be included in a short article. The most thorough guide to today’s orchid growing, in my opinion, is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which is available to be downloaded from the web. Howard’s clearly written guide will furnish a full education on the subject. Also, be sure to visit the Orchid Secrets web site, which has a growing database of information on many topics of orchid cultivation.
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