An introduction to the care and maintenance techniques for thriving hanging orchids, as well as an introduction to green plants and flowers. Next, let's introduce.
Hanging orchids are very easy to grow and almost impossible to kill. They don't require much watering or sun exposure, which can be said to be much easier to grow than green vines. However, while it's simple to keep them alive, it's not easy to make them flourish. Often, other gardening friends post pictures of full-hanging orchids, with roots splitting the pot. Are you envious? Today, I'll share with you how to make hanging orchids flourish and fill with small hanging spikes!
1. Watering should be controlled
Hanging orchids are different from other plants. Their rhizomes are larger, so they have a good water storage capacity and drought resistance. Therefore, we must water them moderately during the breeding process. Too much water can cause root rot.
In the summer, when water evaporates quickly, you can spray more water on the leaves of the hanging orchid!
2. Fertilize regularly
Flourishing requires sufficient fertilizer and water. Long-term lack of fertilizer means the soil lacks nutrients, and the hanging orchid has no motivation to grow. Hanging orchids like calcium and potassium fertilizers. Usually, you can collect eggshells at home, wash them clean with water, expose them to the sun for a few days, then crush them and blend them into a powder with a blender, and store them in a dry plastic bottle. This is a very useful eggshell fertilizer!
It's simple to use. Sprinkle the eggshell fertilizer evenly on the surface of the potting soil or mix it into the soil when changing the soil. The eggshells can supplement calcium for the hanging orchid, making its leaves green and sturdy, naturally hanging down. If the leaves of your hanging orchid always break or bend, it means they lack calcium. Applying some eggshell fertilizer will help.
In addition, hanging orchids can also be watered with nutrient solutions high in nitrogen, such as fermented rice water or soybean water, diluted to a thin consistency. Use it once every 10 days, directly pouring it at the roots. This will make the leaves especially lush and the color green and vibrant!
If you want the hanging orchid to bloom, control the watering near the flowering period and apply a little phosphorus and potassium fertilizer to promote its flower bud differentiation. The flowers of the hanging orchid are also beautiful, small and white, very cute!
3. Sufficient light and good ventilation
Hanging orchids are plants that like light and can tolerate shade. Hanging orchids grown outdoors often grow wildly because they have good light and ventilation, and their root systems are healthy, growing very fast! See the picture below of a hanging orchid that gardening friend FXYQ27 left outside on his own balcony. With good light and ventilation, it wasn't taken care of for half a year and looked like a pile of straw!
However, hydroponic hanging orchids should not be exposed to too much direct sunlight, or they will grow roots instead of leaves. I have a bottle of hydroponic hanging orchid, with roots filling the cup, but few leaves. This is because it was exposed to the sun too much every day. Later, I pruned the roots, and the leaves became a bit more abundant!