How much water should you give your orchid? This is one of the most frequent questions I get emailed about. Don't wait until your orchid needs an S.O.S. call; read on now and your orchid will gratefully thank you for it by producing a spectacularly healthy plant and blooms.
The most common mistake people make when watering their orchid is to water it too much. Orchids are planted in a potting bark or growing medium rather than ordinary soil or potting mix. This potting bark retains a lot of moisture. In fact, when you plant or re-pot your orchid, you should soak the potting bark in water for about 30 minutes before adding it to the pot. This will make sure that it is nicely moist and hydrated. If you grow your orchid indoors, you should let the potting bark dry out completely before watering it again.
A good general guide is to water your plant once a week or every second week sparingly. Did you know that, in the wild, some types of orchids grow naturally on the trunks and branches of trees and its normal for their roots to dry out before being watered again by the rain?
If you want the most healthy and spectacular plants, you need to understand how to replicate the environment that they grew in naturally. Once you understand all about your own particular species and its natural habitat, you will then be able to replicate that environment in your own home or garden. Ask the staff at the garden store where you bought your orchid from for information about your particular species' watering needs.
Alternatively, you could jump on the internet and do a search on your species, its natural habitat, rainfall, humidity etc and replicate this in your home or garden.
Humidity is an essential ingredient for an orchid. An easy and cheap way to humidify your orchids is to provide them with a constant supply of water. You can purchase some inexpensive pebbles and a deep saucer. Pour the pebbles into the saucer and place your orchid pot on top of the pebbles within the saucer. Now, water the pebbles making sure that the water never touches the actual orchid pot. By using this method you are able to set up an artificial high-humidity climate around your orchid very easily, quickly and cheaply.
It is a good idea to create a watering routine for your orchid. This is very easy to do; you can use a regular calendar or you can create your own "Watering/Fertilizing" calendar using one of the calendar templates in Word. The advantage of creating your own is that you can customize it to suit yourself and even add images of your own particular species.
Your orchid will love you taking the time to find out about its particular watering needs and will richly reward your efforts by presenting you with a beautiful, healthy plant. Enjoy!
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