04 February 2024 , 10:53
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You may not believe it given their reputation of being tough to grow houseplants, but orchids can thrive rather easily if you know what they need.
The orchid family is one of the largest groups of flowering plants on the planet and every species has a unique look, size and feature to them. This makes them quite remarkable and beloved by many across the world. However, the flower has a reputation for being high maintenance and often owners see their orchid flower once - and then never again.
One plant expert says that with proper care, your orchid could bloom for months each year making them an excellent value purchase as far as blooming plants go. Graham Rice of the Royal Horticultural Society has shared one of his best - and easiest - tips to get an orchid to bloom more than once a year.
According to the plant expert, of all the orchid varieties, moth orchids (Phalaenopsis), are probably the easiest orchids to grow at home. If your orchid is looking a tad sad and lacking flowers, you shouldn't give up and throw them away. Instead, you should give them a little TLC and you may be rewarded with some more blooms.
Graham explained: “There’s one easy trick that helps enormously: make sure that the temperature at night is lower than the day temperature.”
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He noted that it "doesn't take much" as owners simply have to lower their central heating by a few degrees to “kick the plant into flowering”.
Graham added: “Moving them to a different room in the house may be all they need but it makes a huge difference to most of the orchids we grow in the home.”
Orchid specialists at Just Add Ice Orchids agreed with lowering the temperature to ensure blooming. on their website, Just Add Ice explains: "A day to night temperature difference of five to 10 degrees is necessary to trigger orchid reblooming. When your orchid starts to send up a new spike, you can return it to its usual environment.”
Now this tip does have some science behind it rather than the plant being just awkward. The American Orchid Society says the cooler nighttime temperature allows the orchid to "store rather than expend" the carbohydrates it produces during the day.
The society explained: "Night temperatures that are too high or day-to-night fluctuations that are insufficient are perhaps the second leading cause of failure to bloom. In some cases, plants will not flower unless both the day and night temperatures are below a certain threshold regardless of the day/night fluctuation."
The American Orchid Society says that you should check what species of orchid you have to set the right day and night temperature for them. For example, if you have a phalaenopsis orchid, which is grown under 32°C (90 Fahrenheit) in the day and 26°C (80F) at night, it will not flower even though there is a 10 degree difference.
The society added: "This is because day temperatures above 29°C (85F) and night temperatures above about 23°C (75F) inhibit flowering independently of each other."