How to Attach Orchids to Trees

In tropical humid climates that do not ever receive frost or freezes, you can grow orchids attached directly to the trunks and branches of trees in your garden. Orchids are epiphytes -- plants that grow directly on other plants without any soil. Once you secure an orchid to a tree with wire, it will establish itself and provide long-lasting flowers once or sometimes twice a year.

Orchid
Hammer
2 nails
Wire
Sphagnum moss
Wire cutter

Instructions

- 1
  Select the type of orchid appropriate for your area. Orchids that grow on trees are mostly tropical and will not survive a frost or freeze. This limits outdoor culture on trees to tropical climates and warm protected micro-climates such as around buildings in places like southern California.
- 2
  Locate the place you want the orchid to be permanently. It can be very difficult to move an orchid that has established. Consider light first. Low-light orchids such as Phalaenopsis need deep shade all year from the tree canopy or surrounding structures. Orchids that need brighter light such as Vandas will not flower if they remain heavily shaded. They like to be in full sun to dappled shade and will burn if exposed to direct sun during the hottest part of the day. Choose a place sheltered from wind and heavy rain that provides enough light.
- 3
  Remove the orchid from the pot and shake out all of the potting media. Hold it up to the location you are going to mount it in to estimate the spread of the roots along the trunk.
- 4
  Hammer in a nail just to either side of where the roots end when you hold the orchid against the tree.
- 5
  Twist one end of the wire around one of the nails and let the other end hang loose.
- 6
  Place a handful of wet sphagnum moss on the underside of the orchid's rootball and hold the orchid against the tree. The moss should be wedged between the roots and the tree trunk.
- 7
  Apply another ball of wet moss to the top of the roots so they sit between two layers of moss against the tree trunk.
- 8
  Wrap the wire from nail to nail across the moss and roots, pinning it against the tree. When the orchid is secure, twist the other end of the wire to one of the nails and cut off the excess.
- 9
  Drench the orchid and the moss with water and let it drip dry. Over several months the orchid will begin to grow and the roots will attach themselves to the tree. The moss will slowly decay and fall away. Remove the wire if you want, or let it rust away. It should not interfere with the tree or the orchid if left.

The Common Name for Ground Orchids

How to Reproduce Phalaenopsis

Orchids