Question
QUESTION: I bought Phalaenopsis orchids 1 weeks bak . and i have seen the flowers in 3 of the orchid plants like its dead.iam residing in arizona now. its was in shaded area. but here the weather outside is like 110F . is it b'coz of the hot weather its dying off or do i have to care something more than that . iam watering once in 5 days or so . and is it ok i can keep it indoor ? is the indoor light is more than enough to it to grow? and it small plant .

ANSWER: Hello Anju,

Living in Arizona does make growing orchids a little more difficult than here in California, but it is possible.  In fact, there are a couple of orchid clubs in Phoenix and also in Tucson I believe.  I would definitely say that you should keep it indoors there.  

Look for a place with bright shade, temperatures remain between 60F to 85F, humidity above 50% along with some light air movement.  To help increase the humidity, you can try filling a plastic tray (1 to 2 inch deep) with small pebbles and keeping it filled with water with the pot on top.  Water it when the potting media becomes barely moist.  

Here are some things to check for why the flowers are dying and falling off.  Phalaenopsis flowers can last for 2 months and longer but sudden temperature changes (such as being close to an A/C) can cause them to die early along with fruits close by, freshly painted walls, too much direct sunlight.  

Hope this helped.  

Jim Kawasaki
San Jose, Ca.



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: wut the best care for indoor orchids? like wut shld i look for wen i plan to buy orchids? and i bought some its in small pot? can i change it to big pot? is that ok? or do i have to keep it in same pot? wut shld i do for it to grow? i have seen some orchid grow plus fertilizer in lowe's ? does that b gud enough to  bloom the flowers of the orchids? tell me more abt the care of orchids while it is in indoor does it die if i change it to the big pot?

Answer
Hello again Anju,

Most indoor orchids should be grown in bright shade with temperatures between 60F to 85F, humidity above 50% with some light air movement around them.  Water them when the potting media becomes barely moist.  Also, it would be a good idea to feed them a balance type orchid fertilizer once in a while.  Of course, there are always some exceptions but they are normally not found at Lowe's, Home Depot or other garden centers but at specialty orchid nurseries.  

Before buying any orchid, you should look the plant over for any obvious problems such as insects or their damage to leafs, moss growing over the potting media, presence of a sour odor from the potting media indicating it has gone bad.  

It would not be a good idea to repot any orchid into too big a pot for the amount and size of the roots.  In most cases, it is okay to repot back into the same pot.  If you must repot into a larger pot, only go up one pot size.  Too large a pot for the amount and size of the roots will soon lead the the healthy roots all dying and rotting.  

There are a LOT of orchids out there, many can be grown under similar conditions indoors with only slight differences in how they are placed in relation to sunlight.  Without knowing what kind of orchid it is, it is very difficult to recommend anything specific, but at the beginning I gave some general orchid care instructions.  

Hope this has been of some help.  

Jim Kawasaki
San Jose, Ca.