Are You Giving Your Orchids Rest?

Orchids require "rest" time every year. The precise time for this depends on the species, but for most orchids it should start some time in the fall and continue through most of the winter. You need to care for your plants differently at this time than you would during their energetic growth periods (spring and summer usually). This is an often-overlooked part of growing orchids successfully.

A good rule of thumb is to provide your orchids rest from November through the middle of February. You do this in two ways, basically: Lower the temperature and cut back on water.

For orchids that originate in hot or very warm regions, you should keep the temperature at about 60 0r 65. For species originating in colder locales, you can lower the temperature to around 45 degrees.

During this time, provide your plants only enough water to keep them from shriveling. Most of the moisture should be supplied by misting or by taking steps 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 can water them directly.

Some species will continue to grow during the winter months. These will need somewhat more water than those that truly go dormant. If you see new shoots coming up, 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 must give these as much sun and light during their resting time as you can. This will let their pseudobulbs ripen, in turn letting them grow stronger and flower more freely.

Proper orchid care is not that hard or mysterious. Avoiding all problems, though, requires a good bit more information than can be covered in a short space. The most up-to-date guide to expert orchid growing, beyond question, is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which can be downloaded from the Internet. Mr. Howard's guide is a complete course, useful for novices as well as the more experienced cultivators alike. Also, check out the Orchid Secrets web site, which has an ever-growing library of articles on all aspects of orchid cultivation.