I have a very close friend who has no green thumb. Traditional houseplants shutter, flowers wilt, and even cacti fear her. About a year and a half ago, a mutual friend gave her an orchid. Not being in the position as I am now to help her, I wished her luck and thought the orchid had no chance of survival. From the leaves, it looked like a Phalaenopsis, which in theory is one of the longest lasting and easiest to grow orchid varieties.
For some reason, she had the plant at another less occupied house in the winter months and the heat was turned down. When visiting, she would religiously put about a teaspoon or so of water on it (as we learned reading the last blog, not the proper way to water an orchid) and was shocked and amazed after months of dormancy; a shoot and subsequent buds appeared. The result was an exquisite spotted white phalo that has maintained its blooms for nearly 4 months.
This success made my friend offer to start growing phalos for Dr. Delphinium. While I, as the greenhouse manager, think that we shall stick to acquiring our orchids in quantities of more than one per year, her enthusiasm and newfound excitement of growing orchids is apparent. So if ever you are slightly apprehensive of growing orchids, please take a page from my friend’s book and just jump in: whether by accident or purpose.
Thanks for reading,
Robin
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