Is it Good to Have Air Circulating Around an Orchid?

Significance

• Though orchids prefer high humidity for survival, keeping them in a damp, cramped spot encourages fungi and bacteria to form and eat away the leaves. This is especially true if you splash water on the orchid leaves when you water them. Orchids are also prone to sunburn when they overheat under the beating sun, causing crispy dark spots on the leaves.

Location

• Keep orchids in an airy room, preferably near a window that remains open part of the day. If you can't find a breezy spot, University of Hawaii horticulture professor Kent Kobayashi recommends turning on a fan to encourage air circulation. A ceiling fan or a small fan stationed a few feet from the orchid both work well. This mimics the natural breezes orchids experience in the wild.

Spacing

• Grouping plants close together increases humidity -- a plus for orchids, you may think -- but this also cuts back on air circulation. Smithsonian Gardeners recommends spacing orchids to allow for air circulation, putting the pots in trays filled with wet gravel to increase humidity instead.

Watering

• Air circulation is also a must when you water orchids. Wet foliage is a fatal problem among orchids. To prevent fungal diseases, apply water directly to the orchid soil or roots without wetting the leaves and let the soil dry before watering again. If you want to mist your orchids to increase humidity, mist by midday to give orchids a chance to dry before nightfall, when cooler temperatures hit. Make sure the roots receive some air circulation to prevent rot. You will know you have healthy orchid roots if they are firm and white, according to Kobayashi.