Orchid Power - Spider Orchids

OrchidPower.com
Spider Orchids

Brassias are among the most exotic looking orchids, although they are easy to grow and sometimes flower more than once a year. Commonly and aptly named the Spider Orchid, most of the popular hybrids produce hundreds of colorful spidery blooms on long, adventurous stems than can last up to one month.

Of course, there is more to raising any plant than simply picking out a pretty one and offering it a bright window. Many orchids come from tropical climates and prefer high humidity, usually anywhere from 50 to 60 percent or more, and sometimes up to 75 percent. Most homes usually remain in the 35 to 50 percent range during the winter.

In fact, with few exceptions, a great many orchid species are epiphytes, meaning that they live on or above a plant, usually in trees, and obtain moisture from the air itself or from rainfall running down the sides of their host plants. Short of hosing down your living room on a daily basis, potential orchid growers will have to increase the humidity around their plants using some form of humidity tray. Daily misting is generally insufficient and frequently impractical.

The most basic humidity tray is a pan, even a cookie sheet, filled with pea gravel or pebbles. Orchids are placed on overturned saucers set atop the pebbles so that the orchid’s pot is never sitting in water. Water should be added to cover the pebbles on a regular basis, and replaced periodically. Evaporation from the pebbles will create a lush, humid environment around the plants — without turning the rest of the home into a sauna.