Grow Orchids Outside
If you want to grow orchids outside there are fairly simple steps to take. You have to know which orchids will grow in your region and climate. Or, you can regulate shade and water in amounts that mimic an exotic orchid's natural environment. Some orchids can be grown on trees, others in pots or baskets and still others in the ground. When temperatures get below 60 degrees (15.5 C), take your orchids indoors.
Contents
Steps
Orchid Care
- Study which types of orchids do well outdoors in your climate. Some types of orchid fare better outside than others.
- Do an Internet search for "distribution of orchid species." If a species is listed for your part of the world, the flowers should be able to grow outside.
- Make sure freezing temperatures and frost are done for the season before moving your plants outdoors.
- Situate orchids in an area with just slightly more light than the orchids got indoors. You have to gradually acclimate orchids to the greater intensity and amount of light outdoors. As time passes, move the orchids to areas with less shade.
- Set aside a place for your orchids to grow where they will be shielded from the sun part of the time. Place the orchids under a shade cloth that allows you to expose the orchids to sunlight some of the time. Or place the orchids in pots on benches under trees.
- Water outdoors orchids more frequently than indoor plants because the orchids will be open to air and sunlight, which dry orchids and potting medium faster.
- Spray outdoors orchids with a mix of water, horticulture oil or neem oil and several drops of liquid dish detergent every 3 weeks to keep insects away. There are more insects outdoors than indoor.
- Keep orchids raised off the ground so pests can't easily crawl into the pots or baskets.
Year-Round
- Grow terrestrial orchids, which grow in the ground, in your garden. First first change the soil to a mix of sand, bark, gravel and fibrous loam. Terrestrial orchids of the Pleione, Sobralia, Calanthe, Phaius and Bletia genuses can be grown in a well-drained area with a lot of shade.
- Cultivate orchids outside year-round, if temperatures allow, by hanging orchids on trees. Place some moss on the tree and set the orchid on the moss. Gently tie the orchid to the moss and branch with a nylon or fishing line. In time, the roots will cling to the tree.
- Place orchids in baskets or with their roots exposed on trees if you live in an area with constant rain.
- Cultivate some types of orchids outside year-round in pots, too. Roots may rot if there is too much water in a pot. Make sure water can drain out of the pot through a hole in the bottom. Also, do not place the pot in a secondary pot.
Tips
- If you live in hot and humid weather, like Florida and Southeast Asia, grow Vanda and Epidendrum orchids outside. For mild weather in the daytime and cool temperatures at night, such as in Southern California or coastal New Zealand and Australia, plant Cymbidium in your garden. In areas with intermediate temperatures, grow Oncidium, Dendrobium and Cattleya and other orchids outside.
- Keep orchids in pots or baskets if you have to take them inside in cool or cold weather.
- If an orchid doesn't grow naturally in your region, alter the environment of the orchid by regulating water and moving the orchid around to change light as necessary.
Warnings
- Butterflies or bees could pollinate orchids placed outside. Pollination may cause the orchid to go to seed and stop flowering.
- Check your orchids, including the root balls, for pests before taking the orchids back inside.
