Choosing the Right Orchid for your Collection

Choosing the Right Orchid for your Collection Preparation for weathering winter’s chills begins at the point of purchasing your orchids. Choose carefully for the growing conditions you are able to provide your plants. If you keep your home or greenhouse cool in the winter to save on heating costs, avoid the warmer-growing genera such as phalaenopsis and vanda. Instead, stick to intermediate- (most brassavolas, cattleyas, dendrobiums, epidendrums, laelias or mottled-leaved paphiopedilums) or cooler-growing (cymbidiums, masdevallias, miltonias, odontoglossums, oncidiums, plain-leaved paphiopedilums or sophronitis) orchids, depending on the conditions they will be grown under during the summer months. White or yellow vandas, as well as some dendrobiums (phalaenopsis-and antelope-types), are especially cold sensitive and do not like temperature drops below 60° F (16° C), and can be particularly prone to losing leaves when exposed to cooler temperatures. Seedlings and immature plants, particularly those in flasks or compots, are also much more sensitive to chills than their mature counterparts.

David Off ( Orchidnerd.com ) is a 3rd generation grower of Waldor Orchids. ( www.waldor.com )

David co-founder of www.waldor.com  & Orchidnerd.com

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