Denrobium Help

[n5kzw]

Hi! The name here is Ed. My wife just bought me an orchid for my birthday. It is marked "D. Minie Goudi x Halawa Blue", but it came with no instructions for care and feeding. I have acquired a large number of plants over the years, but the ones filling the house now are those that thrive under my style of benign neglect. I have the feeling that the orchid will not tolerate this style of relationship.

Can anyone point me to some resources for the proper light, care, and feeding for this variety of orchid?

Thanks,
Ed

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

First thing you need to work out is the watering schedule. While the Den is growing or blooming, you can water it before it dries out completely. Flush it well with water while watering. When it is dormant, usually during winter, but sometimes Dens don't bother to slow down, you want to let the Den get very dry between waterigs. So, when the last leaves at the top of the latest cane unfold, and no new little leaves are evident at the top, and no bloom spikes growing, cut way back on watering. You can let them be dry for several days to a week or two, not criticle. When you see a new growth starting at the bottom, start to water more again.

Dens like a lot of light, about 50% of full sun, so find a sunny window with a little shade added. Fertilizing is covered in quite a few of the threads.

[n5kzw]

Thank you, Cynthia, that is exactly the information I was looking for.

Since we live in central Texas, all of our south-facing windows as set back under an 8-foot overhang, but I can give the plant a good eastern exposure. The watering schedule sounds very much in tune with my normal care methods.

Thanks again,
Ed