Orchids are the most amazing, beautiful and mysterious flowers on earth. They belong to epiphytes and in terms of the variety of forms, sophistication and color of flowers, the number of varieties and varieties have no equal.
Orchid hunt
After the discovery of South America, special detachments of orchid hunters were equipped on this continent, who harvested exotic flowers in tropical forests, sometimes at great risk to their lives, and sold for fabulous money. Today, thanks to breeders, it is possible to grow orchids at home.
You have become the proud owner of an unusual flower! Your miracle - with dense leathery glossy green leaves and bunches of deliciously delicate snow-white, pale pink, bright lemon, lilac or orange flowers on slender, flexible peduncles. And it lives in an unpretentious transparent plastic cup, through which strong roots are clearly visible, in places sprinkled with pieces of bark.
What is epiphyte
How to care for this miracle? What conditions should he create so that it feels like in its native rainforest and generously presents with flowers? After the purchase, the orchid needs to be transplanted, but not into the ground, but into a special substrate.
First, the epiphyte orchid. It is a plant that settles on the surface of another plant, mainly on the branches and trunk of a tree. But don't worry, orchids are not predators. They receive nutrients from the environment and do not bring the slightest harm to other plants. In an apartment where there are no tropical trees, it is enough for orchids to prepare a substrate.
How to grow orchids at home
For the normal growth and development of orchids, their roots need a lot of air. Therefore, the substrate must be composed of components that provide aeration to the root system and retain the necessary moisture. The substrate is based on tree bark. Sphagnum moss and charcoal are added to it.
Pine bark is used most often. It is easy to find it on sale, and it is best to prepare it yourself in the forest. At the same time, you can look for sphagnum islands and also prepare it for further use.
Fallen leaves can be added to the orchid substrate as another component. They will serve as an additional source of plant nutrition.
The next component of the substrate will be charcoal. The rest after the grill and barbecue is fine. Its pieces of 1, 5-2 cm in size are added to the substrate along with a small amount of sphagnum. And the purchased orchid is planted in this nutrient medium. In such a substrate, exotic orchids grow and bloom beautifully in the apartment.
