Pruning Tips for Orchid Care

Reasons to Prune

• Prune your orchids to remove dead and diseased branches, to control the size and shape of the plant, to increase strength and to rejuvenate old growth. Correct pruning is essential to the overall health of the plant. The best time to prune your orchids is in late fall, since it is easier to spot dead branches.

Types of Orchids

• Know which type of orchid you are dealing with before you start cutting. Some drop their dead and yellow leaves without intervention by physical cutting. Orchids are categorized as being either monopodial (single stalk growing upwards) or sympodial (new shoots grow from the main stalk, each a complete plant). The Vanda is an example of a monopodial orchid. Vandas are high-maintenance plants. Pruning involves keeping weeds from gaining any sort of nearby foothold and trimming the orchid’s leaves in the fall when they turn yellow or brown.

  Dendrobium is an example of a sympodial orchid. To prune it correctly, remove the plant entirely from its pot after blooming season, and trim not only the dead and dying branches but dead parts of the root system as well. Repot.

Dividing

• A specific type of pruning is known as dividing; this is when you double your orchid count by splitting a single plant into two separate and viable plants able to grow on their own. Try to leave three to five blooms with each plant. For this pruning process, use your sterilized shears or razor blade to separate the plant beginning with the rhizome, which is simply the main underground root structure. Proceed to slowly and carefully separate the rhizome, and voila--two orchids now exist where there used to be only one. The rule of thumb is to divide when the new growth doesn't get as big as the older growth. A healthy orchid's new growth should always be larger.

  A nonblooming orchid indicates something is amiss in the growing environment and it's time to investigate. Possible problems could be the light, humidity or watering is off, or maybe there is not enough room in the pot. This could be another indicator it's time to divide and repot.