Growing Tips

The Vanda Alliance is made up mostly of warm- and full-sun-growing orchids with colorful flowers. Originating in tropical Asia, they are easily grown in warm climates, where plants are cultivated outside in light shade, such as in a lath house. In climates where winters are cold, they are often summered outside, and grown inside during the winter in a sunny window, or year round in a greenhouse. Smaller growing ascocendas are best outside tropical conditions.

The key to Tolumnias (equitant oncidiums) is understanding their natural habitat. The species are endemic to the Caribbean Basin with many confined to a single island. Most are found in intermediate to warm conditions on twigs exposed to bright light and air movement. Humidity is high and heavy dews or rain showers occur daily. Air movement is constant and plants never remain wet for long. Today's hybrids offer an astounding array of colors and patterns. Petite size and adaptability to a wide range of conditions make them suitable for under lights or on windowsills. And wait ... don't cut off that spike after the flowers fade. A secondary flowering will often occur and provide several more weeks of bloom.

Stanhopeas and related genera have large, pleated leaves and bear incredible flowers with intricate, complex structures and mechanisms for pollination, ranging from channeled walkways for insects to buckets of a watery solution. Most have inflorescences that grow downward, so the plants must be potted in hanging baskets or similar containers. Flowers are often spicily fragrant, and although the flowers are short-lived, each plant may produce many inflorescences throughout the year. Related genera Paphinia and Peristeria grow warmer than others in this group, and may produce upright inflorescences.

Phalaenopsis, the moth orchid, is perhaps the best orchid for growing in the
home, and is also a favorite with greenhouse growers. Well-grown plants can
flower often, sometimes with a few flowers throughout the year, though the main
season is late winter into spring. Average home temperatures and conditions are
usually sufficient. Flower stems on certain hybrids can be forced to rebloom by
cutting the tip off after the initial flowering. Only healthy plants should be induced
to flower repeatedly. Based on DNA analyses, the former genera Doritis
and Doritaenopsis are now synonyms with Phalaenopsis and should be grown
similarly.

Paphiopedilums are often called ‘slipper orchids’ because of their unique pouch. They are easily grown as houseplants and their care is very similar to African Violets.

This an extraordinarily large and diverse New World genus with an equally diverse number of habitats. Oncidiums may originate anywhere from sea level in the tropics to the high elevations of the Andes. This obviously makes cultural generalizations difficult.

These high-altitude orchids from the New World Tropics flourish where cool temperatures prevail year round. Odontoglossums are known for their striking sprays of flowers. Culture is similar for hybrids in this group, some being Odontonia, Odontioda and Vuylstekeara.

These striking orchids, which are also known as pansy orchids, owing to their similarity to garden pansies, are enjoying increasing popularity. Miltoniopsis are cool-growing orchids that originate in the higher elevations of the Andes in Colombia, Panama and Ecuador.

Lycaste are deciduous in varying degrees, from the strongly deciduous, yellow-flowered species like Lycaste aromotica that flowers from leafless pseudobulbs to the evergreen types like Lycaste skinneri with pseudobulbs that retain their leaves at flowering.

Dendrobium is a diverse genus of orchids with different cultural needs. This culture information is for the phalenopsis-type dendrobiums pictured above. They are evergreen with thin, tall stems (pseudobulbs).

Dendrobium is a diverse genus of orchids with different cultural needs. Many go through a growth phase and then a rest phase during the course of one year, and must be given water and temperature to match these periods of growth and rest.

These orchids are prized for their long-lasting sprays of flowers,used especially as cut flowers or for corsages in the spring. There are two main types of cymbidiums - standards and miniatures.

More orchids are killed by incorrect watering than by any other reason. There are two separate components to proper watering: when and how. The vast majority of orchids grown by hobby growers are naturally found on trees above the ground, where the light is more plentiful.

Cattleyas are among themost beautiful of orchidflowers. Often used incorsages and wedding bouquets, their bloomscan last several weeks to a month or more.

This unusual group of orchids offers fascinating, waxy flowers thatoften have the peculiar habit of discharging their pollen masses fpollinia)onto pollinators. Almost always deciduous, the pseudobulbous plants have strict growing and resting periods.