Tips for buying new orchid plant

[san_ghosh01]

I am new in orchid cultivation. Please suggest me what points i must keep in my mind while purchasing a new orchid plant

[Sharyn]

Welcome to the forum. You should update your profile to show your location. It will be helpful to others in advising you. Go to your user settings and then update profile.

I believe the first thing you should do is consider your lighting and growing environment. Will you be growing indoors or outdoors? What kind of light do you have? These things will help you determine what type of orchids will grow best for your temperatures and lighting environment.

[11Orchid126]

I agree with Sharyn. The most important consideration in orchid growing is light. If you will keep your orchid in a window, what kind of light will it get...south? east? west? Hardly any orchids will grow in north light, so if that's the only light you have, you should think of supplementing it.

Once you know what kind of light the orchid will get, then you can research what types of orchids will grow in that light. Everything else, temperature, fertilizer, humidity, will depend on the orchid.

[PhalPal]

I learned a long time ago to determine my conditions and pick an orchid accordingly. You just can't fight nature no matter how hard I tried.

[kmarch]

san ghosh01, Sharyn and PhalPal are spot on. The first and most important thing when buying new orchids is to know the cultural conditions you already have in yoru home or growing space and then buy orchids that will thrive in those conditions.

WHAT CONDITIONS DO YOU HAVE TO OFFER?
LIGHT: Do you have high, medium, or low light? Are you growing in your home? Northern or Southern Hemisphere? If you are in the Northern Hemisphere, and of you have a south, south-west, or south-east window, you have a high-light space. If you have an east or west window, you have medium light spaces, if you have a north window, you have low light spaces.

TEMPERATURE: What are the night-time winter low temperatures in yoru space? What are your day-time summer high temperatures?
Here are the traditionally accepted night time minimums for the temp categories:

Cold - 50F or below (10C or below) minimum temp
Cool - 50-55F (10-13C) minimum temp
Intermediate - 55-65F (13-18C) minimum temp
Warm - 65-70F (18-21C) minimum temp
Hot - above 70C (above 21C) minimum temp

HUMIDITY & WATER: Some orchids need high humidity while others are happy with the ordinary humidity levels found in the average home. If you're growing in your home, you may want to avoid high-humidity orchids. The same with watering, some orchids want lots of water (constantly moist) while others like to dry out. Still other orchids need to be heavily watered or not watered at all depending on the season. So what kind of "waterer" do you think you should be? Are you a busy person who can't be bothered to remember to water? If so choose an orchid that is dry tolerant. Are you a meticulous person who is likely to pay attention to your orchid's watering requirements? If so you'll probably do well with just about any watering needs.

HOW TO SELECT A GOOD PLANT
Once you have found a plant (or plants) that need the same conditions you have to offer (and you'll probably have a lot to choose from):

LOOK AT THE LEAVES: They should be fresh and healthy looking, firm and clean. Sometimes a little spotting it normal but look at the undersides of leaves and in the tight areas of the pseudobulbs and leaves and see fi there are any signs of insects. If you see bugs, choose a different plant.

LOOK AT THE POTTING MIX: It should also be fresh looking and should not be muddy, or too broken down or decomposed. If the mix is broken down, roots could possibly be in poor health. Is the plant firm in its pot? A loose or wobbly plant could indicate poor or damaged roots.

LOOK AT THE TAG: The name of the orchid can give you a lot of information on how to grow it. Is it a species? A hybrid?

ASK QUESTIONS: Talk to the vendor about any plants you have questions about. Tell them what conditions you have in your growing area at home and ask for recommendations for plants that might grow well for you.

All that info should get you off to a good start. If you have other questions let us know and we'll see what we can do for you.

Happy growing!

[san_ghosh01]

Thanks for your prompt reply. My plants are in the balcony of my house facing the east. It gets the early morning sun for about 2 hours and the light from the south for about an hour. I have only one type of orchid which i believe is Cattleya. I have uploaded few photographs of my orchids. Will you please make few comments about those pictures

[joan gero]

I'd love to see your orchids, San ghosh, but I don't think they uploaded... can you try again?

[san_ghosh01]

Please go to the Orchid Photo Gallery, you will find them.

[Sharyn]

san ghosh01: Your cattleya is very beautiful. I love the colors.
You might want to review this link to attach thumbnail pictures to your posts. If you have trouble, help is readily available from Admin or one of the professionals on the forum. Good luck. Help with posting pics PLEASE!!!!

[Tobi]

Very pretty Cattleya San Ghosh. With your lighting conditions, many of the
Oncidium alliance would also do well.

[joan gero]

Lovely cattlya, Sandip!

[exasperatus2002]

Originally Posted by kmarch

san ghosh01, Sharyn and PhalPal are spot on. The first and most important thing when buying new orchids is to know the cultural conditions you already have in yoru home or growing space and then buy orchids that will thrive in those conditions.

WHAT CONDITIONS DO YOU HAVE TO OFFER?
LIGHT: Do you have high, medium, or low light? Are you growing in your home? Northern or Southern Hemisphere? If you are in the Northern Hemisphere, and of you have a south, south-west, or south-east window, you have a high-light space. If you have an east or west window, you have medium light spaces, if you have a north window, you have low light spaces.

TEMPERATURE: What are the night-time winter low temperatures in yoru space? What are your day-time summer high temperatures?
Here are the traditionally accepted night time minimums for the temp categories:

Cold - 50F or below (10C or below) minimum temp
Cool - 50-55F (10-13C) minimum temp
Intermediate - 55-65F (13-18C) minimum temp
Warm - 65-70F (18-21C) minimum temp
Hot - above 70C (above 21C) minimum temp

HUMIDITY & WATER: Some orchids need high humidity while others are happy with the ordinary humidity levels found in the average home. If you're growing in your home, you may want to avoid high-humidity orchids. The same with watering, some orchids want lots of water (constantly moist) while others like to dry out. Still other orchids need to be heavily watered or not watered at all depending on the season. So what kind of "waterer" do you think you should be? Are you a busy person who can't be bothered to remember to water? If so choose an orchid that is dry tolerant. Are you a meticulous person who is likely to pay attention to your orchid's watering requirements? If so you'll probably do well with just about any watering needs.

HOW TO SELECT A GOOD PLANT
Once you have found a plant (or plants) that need the same conditions you have to offer (and you'll probably have a lot to choose from):

LOOK AT THE LEAVES: They should be fresh and healthy looking, firm and clean. Sometimes a little spotting it normal but look at the undersides of leaves and in the tight areas of the pseudobulbs and leaves and see fi there are any signs of insects. If you see bugs, choose a different plant.

LOOK AT THE POTTING MIX: It should also be fresh looking and should not be muddy, or too broken down or decomposed. If the mix is broken down, roots could possibly be in poor health. Is the plant firm in its pot? A loose or wobbly plant could indicate poor or damaged roots.

LOOK AT THE TAG: The name of the orchid can give you a lot of information on how to grow it. Is it a species? A hybrid?

ASK QUESTIONS: Talk to the vendor about any plants you have questions about. Tell them what conditions you have in your growing area at home and ask for recommendations for plants that might grow well for you.

All that info should get you off to a good start. If you have other questions let us know and we'll see what we can do for you.

Happy growing!

Great info. I actually just joined your forum today looking for this lighting info. I live in Pennsylvania and have my orchids in a southern window but and looking for a new house which might not have a good southern exposure like I have now.

[PhalPal]

Welcome to the forum!!! Here is a link to another thread you will find useful.
My Growing Space #2

[san_ghosh01]

I am still struggling in sending a new post. Please help me