Personal Experiences in Cultivating Cold Orchids
This is a small knowledge about cultivating cold orchids at home, sharing personal experiences in cultivating cold orchids. Let's learn about it together.
There is a saying about cultivating cold orchids that it is "nine deaths and one life." However, as long as the key points are mastered, the reproduction rate is not lower than that of spring or Huì orchids. In my more than three years of cultivating cold orchids on the mountain, the seedling emergence rate is about 50% or more. I now share some tips from the cultivation process with orchid friends.
Cold Orchid
I. Planting
Cold orchids often grow under dense broad-leaved forests on steep slopes, with less sunlight, shallow roots, and a thin layer of humus soil covering the roots, which has good water permeability. Therefore, when planting, choose a high-foot purple sand pot, with one-third of the bottom filled with coarse brick particles or foam plastic blocks, the middle mixed with mushrooms, coarse sawdust, weathered stones, planting stones, and soybean-sized brick particles to one-third of the pot, and the top mixed with rice-sized weathered stones and brick particles with a small amount of humus soil. The planting material should be loose, breathable, water-retaining, and have good insulation properties. Special attention should be paid to the fact that using hard planting materials, sawdust, or humus soil alone does not result in high survival rates, seedling emergence rates, or flowering rates.
II. Cultivation
Since the growing environment of cold orchids differs from that of spring and Huì orchids, the cultivation methods should be slightly different. First, the shade and temperature are similar to those of black orchids, especially in the high-temperature season with strong sunlight, more attention should be paid to shading and moisture retention. In addition, foliar water should be sprayed early in the morning or evening on sunny days, achieving about 80% shade. This way, the leaves are glossy and less prone to disease; in the high-temperature season, I place the cold orchids on the lower shelf of the orchid rack, with spring and Huì orchids above to block the light, and the effect is quite good. Second, prevent wind and frost. In autumn and winter, avoid strong winds and cover to keep warm on frosty days. Third, fertilization. Cold orchids planted with the above materials generally require little or no fertilization, but foliar sprays with high nitrogen content fertilizers such as Flower Treasure No. 4, B1 germination promoter, etc., can be applied from April to June. From August to October, apply fertilizers containing phosphorus and potassium, such as flowering fertilizers, Flower Treasure No. 3, monopotassium phosphate, etc.
III. Maintenance
Whether cold orchids can bloom, bloom well, and emit a fragrant aroma depends crucially on maintenance. For dark-colored flowers, the light should be slightly stronger, while for plain-hearted flowers, the light should be slightly shaded. When the flower spike starts to grow until before blooming, if plant protection is not paid attention to, the flower bud is easily僵烂. Moreover, the flower bud of cold orchids is easily attached by mites, whose color is similar to that of the flower bud and is often not easily discovered. Once discovered, it must be treated promptly, otherwise the flower will not bloom. Using insecticides such as Flower Health No. 1 and cypermethrin can effectively prevent and control this pest. Cold orchids often bloom in late autumn and early winter when the weather is getting colder, and the fragrance is often weak. To make the cold orchid emit a fragrant aroma, it should be exposed to the sun more during the flowering period. Even at night, it will exude a faint fragrance. Cold orchids have beautiful and fragrant flowers, bright colors, tall stems, upright and arching leaves, with a dense and graceful posture, soft yet firm, and the flowers and leaves together are elegant. Among Chinese orchids, they have unique charm and will be valued.
Yunnan Summer Cold Orchid
When it comes to Yunnan orchids, people may pay more attention to莲瓣兰 (lotus petal orchids), but in fact, Yunnan has complex terrain and diverse climates, and in addition to the excellent-quality lotus petal orchids in Western Yunnan, there are many other excellent orchid varieties growing in many parts of Yunnan. The summer cold orchid in southern Yunnan is a very good orchid variety. The summer cold orchid is a variant of the cold orchid, growing in the mountains of southern Yunnan. It is a terrestrial orchid with developed, thick, and long roots, and inconspicuous pseudobulbs. Each plant has 4-6 leaves, which are semi-erect with thick veins, 35-80 cm long, 1-2 cm wide, dark green in color with a glossy sheen, and the leaves flutter and are very graceful. The flowering period is from May to June, with each spike having 8-10 flowers, the spike is upright, the spike is as tall as or taller than the leaves, the fragrance is pure, strong, and long-lasting, the perianth is bluish-green or yellow-green, the petals are narrow and long, about 7 cm in diameter. The lip is green with red spots.
In addition to common varieties, summer cold orchids also have some rare varieties such as plain-hearted summer cold orchids, multi-colored summer cold orchids, new varieties hybridized with other varieties, and various leaf arts, which are very popular among orchid enthusiasts.
Summer cold orchids are not picky about climate and soil, and are easy to cultivate and propagate. They are indeed a rare gem among Yunnan orchids. While ordinary cold orchids bloom in winter, the summer cold orchids in southern Yunnan bloom in May and June, when most other orchids are in the growing period, making it the off-season for orchids. However, the summer cold orchids are in full bloom, which is quite rare and adds joy to orchid enthusiasts during the off-season.
The detailed content of the personal experiences in cultivating cold orchids introduced above has been explained to you, hoping it can be helpful to you!