How to Care for Wild Orchids
Article Guide: This article covers the care and cultivation techniques of wild orchids, as well as topics related to green plants and flowers. Let's take a look together.
This afternoon, a friend from another city discussed with me about wild orchids he collected from the mountains, including how to dig, plant, and manage them. He mentioned that during the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday in September (September 17, 2019), he went back to his hometown and collected three wild orchids, even in the rain.
At the time, the orchid seedlings looked robust, but after planting them at home, there was no sign of improvement in the leaves until yesterday when he checked again. To his surprise, two out of the three pots of orchids had withered leaves. It seems they won't survive. What could be the reason?
In theory, the survival rate of wild orchids planted downhill is very high, unless the planting material and environment are indeed too poor. Otherwise, even if it's difficult to survive, it wouldn't be possible for all seedlings to wither in just over 20 days. Through his detailed description, I found that he made several mistakes in the process of digging, transporting, and planting, and these mistakes are usually not noticeable, but their consequences can vary from minor to severe.
Three Mistakes in Operation
Firstly, he went to the mountain in the rain, while I usually suggest going on sunny days, preferably after consecutive sunny days. This is because the moisture in the soil around the orchid roots is low, and the roots are more flexible, making it less likely to break the healthy roots during digging. Most of the broken roots are healthy, while the hollow and rotten ones are not easily broken.
Secondly, after collecting the orchids, he wrapped the soil around the roots to make it easier for them to adapt to the pot (bringing the original mountain soil). Since it was a rainy day, the soil was sticky and formed a mud ball, which he then put in a plastic bag. When he planted them at home, he didn't wash the roots and planted them with the mud ball. This kept the roots in a suffocated state, and without fresh air, the roots couldn't grow well, let alone his completely air-sealed environment.
How to Care for Wild Orchids
Thirdly, the orchids collected in the rain were brought home in a plastic bag, and the leaves were in close contact with the soil for several hours. When he planted them, he saw that the leaves were covered in soil and carefully wiped them with a cloth. This was another mistake. Like the roots, the leaves also need to breathe. The leaves have fine pores that can breathe oxygen and carbon dioxide, which is a prerequisite for photosynthesis. Wiping with the cloth damaged these pores on the leaves, preventing them from breathing effectively. Leaves without proper breathing will wither due to suffocation.
Conclusion: This friend made all three mistakes when planting wild orchids from the mountains. How could the orchids possibly thrive? In fact, these issues might not affect the survival of orchids in good weather, but at most, they would only affect the adaptation time. However, when several unfavorable conditions come together, the result is that the orchids can't survive.
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