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Quickly Revive A Dehydrated, Dry Orchid With Black Tea
Do you have a dry, dehydrated orchid that looks like it has seen better days? So much so, that you even fear it may be dying? Does your orchid display dehydrated, limp and floppy-looking leaves? Upon closer inspection, do you notice dry, dehydrated roots? If so, it sounds like your orchid needs something to revive it, and fast. Believe it or not, one of the best things to revive your orchids may be sitting in your kitchen cupboard right now -- black tea. That's right-- the same cup that you may enjoy everyday just might be exactly what your orchid needs to revitalize and rehydrate it back to its former…
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How To Grow Orchids In Wood Baskets (With Pictures)
Growing orchids in slat wood baskets is one of the best ways to grow and display this spectacular specimen of the plant world. First, cultivating orchids in hanging open-air baskets is an easy way to display your orchid's beauty, showcasing its gorgeous cascade of flowers, whether hanging on your lanai, from a tree, or near a bright window. Even more importantly though, growing orchids in baskets closely mimics the way orchids grow in the wild, making caring for them easier than when growing orchids pot-bound. In this post, I discuss why and how to grow your orchids in hanging baskets to maximize their health and blooming potential. Why Grow Orchids…
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Stimulate Root Growth On An Orchid With No Roots: How To Grow New Roots On An Orchid
There are few things worse for an orchid grower than to discover your delicate plant suddenly appears to have no living, viable roots, and you are helpless as to how to save it. Shriveled roots on an orchid are a source of stress for every orchid grower because without roots your orchid will dehydrate and, eventually, die. In previous posts, I discuss a number of measures you can take to avoid reaching the point where your orchid's roots start dying. In articles about re-potting an orchid and trimming an orchid's dead roots, I discuss the importance of these preventative, prophylactic measures in preventing root rot. However, unfortunately, bad things do…
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Why Are The Leaves Of My Vanda Orchid Turning Yellow? Five Causes & How To Save A Dying Vanda
Caring for Vanda orchids can sometimes feel like a gardener's version of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears." Always trying to avoid "too much" or "too little" in the quest to arrive at what is "just right" for this temperamental yet beautiful plant. At least that's what I've experienced, and have heard voiced by many Vanda-growing friends. As cultivators of this finicky plant, we always seek to do the right thing, and with Vanda, it's sometimes hard to know exactly what that is. So, in the quest to share knowledge in the ever-growing orchid community, I am starting an Orchid series that answers specific questions. While I have a more comprehensive…
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How To Trim An Orchid’s Dead Roots & Why You Should: A Step-By-Step Guide With Pictures
Have you looked at your orchid's roots lately? Your plant may appear healthy on the surface, but what lies beneath can be frightening. In this post, I discuss how to trim an orchid's dead roots & why it may benefit your orchid. If you look at your orchid's roots, whether while repotting or by chance, you may be disturbed by what you see. Brown, shriveled, desiccated shells now hang where once plump, silvery green roots flourished. A disturbing sight I know, but you are not alone as it's something every orchid grower must face at some point. As part of an ongoing orchid series for the home gardener, I am…
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How To Repot A Phalaenopsis Orchid: A Definitive Step-By-Step Guide to How, When & Why You Should Repot Your Monopodial Orchid
Like all orchids, the Phalaenopsis has an impressive lifespan, during which it will experience changes that will necessitate "repotting" to improve and refresh its overall living conditions. Some of these changes include the degrading potting conditions that happen over time, as well as its need for space and proper ventilation. As a grower of these unique and beautiful plants, you will want to accommodate these changes by knowing how to repot a Phalaenopsis orchid, and when and why you should. While not a complicated process, there are some important steps you need to follow in order to create the best and most comfortable and healthy home for your orchid. **How…
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How To Get A Vanda Orchid To Bloom In A Few Easy Steps – Why Won’t My Vanda Orchid Bloom?
Why Choose Vanda Orchids? Exotic Beauty, Longevity, Delightful Fragrances & Ease of Care & Cultivation - Now Help Your Vanda Orchid to Bloom This post will answer many of your questions about how to get a Vanda orchid to bloom, but first some information about what makes Vandas so magnificent. Vanda orchids are known for producing some of the most gorgeous and showy flowers, distinguished by their stunning array of vibrant colors and often larger flower size, although plants can range from miniature to huge, tall flora. Uniquely captivating, Vandas are standouts in many respects and, as a member of the exotic, other-worldly family of flowers known as orchids, that…
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Why Has My Orchid Suddenly Changed Color? The Mystery Of Color Changing Orchids
A Color Cornucopia of Orchids There are a couple of times throughout the year when an innocent walk through a garden center at the local home improvement store, Walmart, or even grocery store, becomes an exercise in self-restraint and willpower -- for me, that time is orchid season. When fresh orchids are delivered and prominently displayed in garden centers everywhere, it can feel like walking through an art museum - or a gauntlet designed to test the willpower - impossible to just pass by without stopping, gawking at, and sometimes, buying one of these all natural "works of art." Dendrobiums and phalaenopsises of every color jockey for attention, hanging out…
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A Gardener’s Diary… On Growing Orchids And Five Common Orchid Myths
Although I never intended to make this strictly a gardening website, there is no escaping the increased appeal of anything done out in fresh air in the great outdoors where you don't have to wear a mask the entire time, #quarantine life. Of course, you are getting the benefits of clean, fresh outdoor air and summer sunshine while it lasts, but you are also making the most of the painfully short season before time marches on towards fall. Not to mention, there are few cheaper, all-natural antidotes to the escalating stress of modern life than time spent in the garden. When I lived in Northern climates, my interest in gardening,…
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How to Make A Bromeliad Kokedama Hanging Moss Ball for A Beautiful Vertical Garden
If you have a bromeliad and are looking for a fun, creative way to display your epiphyte plant in the "open air" as nature intended, let me introduce you to Kokedama. In simple terms, Kokedama is the Japanese art of growing plants suspended in a ball of moss. Kokedama lets you turn your air plants, including bromeliads, into eye-level works of art by growing them in what is essentially a hanging vertical garden. Visually captivating yet easy for both the experienced and novice gardener alike, the resulting garden is beautifully tropical yet low-maintenance -- provided you have the right plants and conditions. Since Kokedama is not for every plant or…