Growing Orchids Outside

While orchids are a common indoor houseplant due to their low light needs, they are also a delicate addition to an outdoor garden. As tropical flowers, they are often colorful, with tall, spindly stalks that sometimes bend under the weight of the blossoms. They live in the wild as epiphytes, meaning they attach themselves to trees to grow. In a domestic garden outside, they require similar conditions --- such as a tree to host them --- though hardy terrestrial orchids thrive in regular soil.

Moss
1/2-strength fertilizer

Instructions

- 1
  Choose a partially shady, well-drained planting site for orchids. A spot beneath a tree will protect them from the beating sun. Prepare raised beds of soil for hardy orchids to ensure drainage, as orchids cannot tolerate soggy conditions after heavy rains.
- 2
  Plant hardy orchids in raised beds, or attach epiphytic orchids to moss, and then to a tree. Keep them close together to increase humidity, especially in dry desert climates. If you're planting them in hanging pots or boxes, hang high-light orchids such as Cattleyas and Oncidiums over low-light orchids such as the Phalaenopsis to shade the latter, as Susan M. Stephenson's American Orchid Society article "Growing Orchids Outdoors in Southern California" recommends.
- 3
  Water orchids whenever the soil dries out. In hot summer months or dry climates, this could mean watering every other day, while months of heavy rain may eliminate their need for domestic watering.
- 4
  Apply a fertilizer with an equal ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium --- such as 12-12-12 --- on a weekly basis. Hardy orchids require less frequent fertilizing. Dilute the fertilizer with water until it is half- or quarter-strength, as orchids prefer weak fertilizer.

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Orchids