Phalaenopsis orchids are among the easiest of all orchids to care for and it is not hard to make them flower again and again. Despite this, there is a lot of people who think they are unable to get the orchids to flower again and therefore throw them away once they are done flowering. This is a mistake, not only because the orchid can be flowering again in a few months but also because the orchids will grow more and more flowers as they get older. A well-cared-for Phalaenopsis orchid will flower almost nonstop and can have tens of flowers at the same time. An orchid-like this is worth the effort it takes to get one and is a lot more stunning than those you can buy in the store. If you are one of all those who throw their Phalaenopsis orchids away you should stop doing that at once and keep reading below. You will be glad that you did in 6 months. If you already keep your Phalaenopsis orchids you might also want to read on below. Who knows, you might still be able to pick up a tip or two.
Phalaenopsis orchids are easy to care for. They want to be placed in a window with a lot of light without direct sunlight. Direct sunlight can damage leaves. An East or West window is usually ideal. They can temporarily be moved to a darker spot such as on a table while flowering if you want to be able to enjoy the flowers better. It should however never be placed where it is too dark and should always be given a brighter spot to recuperate once the flowering is over. If you want your plant to flower year around you will need to leave them in a bright spot year-round.
Light is one of the two most important factors to consider when trying to get a Phalaenopsis orchid to flower indoors. The second important factor is water. Phalaenopsis do not like to get too wet and does not like to have water standing on its leaves. Standing water can easily cause the leaves to root. This is due to the clinging to tree branches in the wild. It is in other words not natural for the orchid to have the leaf rosette facing upwards like they do when we keep them as potted plants. For this reason, they should always be watered from beneath. Put a little water on the tray and let the planting medium soak it up. It is good if the medium is moist but not wet. If they get too dry you will easily see it on the leaves as they will start to get wrinkles if kept to dry.
Phalaenopsis orchids do well in normal indoor temperatures so you do not give any special attention to the temperature. The orchids only need to be replanted about every 3 years so you do not have to worry about that for a long time yet. The orchid you bought should do well in the pot it came in for at least another two years and by then you should feel a lot more comfortable in caring for this hardy gem.
These orchids will do well without any extra nutrients but will grow faster and flower more if they are given orchid fertilizer or well diluted regular flower fertilizer about once a month during the growth period. Dilute regular flower fertilizer about 5 times more than the package says if you want to give it to these orchids.
A final tip to get your Phalaenopsis orchids to re-flower is to not remove the entire flower stalk once they have finished flowering. Instead cut the stalk or spike as it called on orchids just above the highest node. Nodes are the little bulbs, bumps on the stalk. It is not uncommon that a new batch of flowers grows out from the stalk or if you are lucky you might end up with a Keiki, a new baby orchid that you will be able to plant in a separate post once it has grown a little bit.
Once you have discovered that Phalaenopsis orchids are easy to care for there are plenty of other easy orchids for you to try such as Mokara and Paphiopedilum orchids.