How to Grow Orchid at Home

October 4, 2015

While most orchids are only hardy planting in USA, the vibrant flowers make excellent indoor specimens when given adequate soil and moisture. We can propagate orchids with the same characteristics as the mother plant by easier means, including stem cuttings, back bulb cuttings, top cuttings and keiki cuttings o grow several

Today we are going to introduce 2 common ways for orchid lovers to plant orchid at home.

1. Stem Cuttings

For stem cuttings, you will need a waterproof tray about 3 inches deep. Fill it either with damp sphagnum moss, damp sand or a mix of both. Then clip a cane that’s at least 10 inches long, severing it near the orchid’s base and just above a node, which is a leaf joint. Cut the cane into pieces that retain at least two nodes each, and coat the pieces’ raw ends with a powdered anti-fungal such as charcoal, cinnamon or sulfur. After laying the pieces horizontally on top of the medium in the tray, press them only lightly into it so that their surfaces remain uncovered. Encase the tray in a transparent plastic bag and place it in a warm position where it will receive bright light but no direct sun. In about three to four months, some of the cuttings may send up new plantlets from the nodes.

Homeguides — How to grow orchid from cutting Tutorial

2. Keiki Cuttings

A keiki (baby in Hawaiian) is a plantlet that may sometimes form on a stem or near the base of an orchid. Allow it to continue growing on the parent plant until it has roots at least 1 inch long and with two or three leaves. Keiki’s are a great way to propagate orchids without needing to pollinate orchids and grow orchid seedlings.

Water the parent plant on the day before you plan to remove the keiki. Then cut its stem beneath the roots and plant it in a pot of fine orchid bark, keeping its roots near the surface. Mr Brown Thumb has a great tutorial on showing us how to cut the orchid keiki and plant it. let’s check it out there.