Ventilation for Orchid: What should you know?

Another important aspect in how to care for an orchid that I cover in detail on our website, is providing adequate ventilation.

Air movement for your orchid is important for many reasons. Air flow can help eliminate problems such as drying up any water that is standing on the leaves from watering, it can increase the speed of nutrient production inside of the plant, and it can also help the leaves to tolerate heat without getting sunburned.

Likewise, if your air movement is restricted then the air can become stagnant and you’ll start to grow bacteria or mold on your orchid and infection and can also start to die from lack of a carbon dioxide source.

Replicating Your Orchid’s Natural Environment

Orchids that are grown outside in their natural habitat usually have some amount of air circulation at all times. As mentioned above, this is vital in the development of the orchid and to keep the orchid healthy.

By being able to replicate an orchid’s environment, in terms of air circulation, this will help to prevent the orchid from growing disease and ultimately the orchid’s overall well-being.

Many orchid growers like to group several orchids together in order to increase the amount of humidity. Because proper humidity is another important consideration when it comes to how to care for orchids, this might seem like a good idea.

However, you need to be careful when grouping your orchids because this will also cut down on the amount of air that will be able to circulate among each of your orchids.

How to Improve Air Flow in Your Home

Improving air flow within your home can be accomplished very easily.

Summer Months: During the summer months, when it is nice outside, simply opening the windows and doors in your house will allow enough air to come inside to circulate and stir the air around the orchid.

Winter Months: In the winter, when it is much too cold to open the windows and doors, you can buy an oscillating fan to stir the air around your orchid, or even just turn on an overhead ceiling fan.

The wind will mimic the breezes orchids experience in their natural environment. Be sure to turn the fan on the lowest setting so that the wind it creates is not too strong for the plant, because this could cause damage.

A Few Final Thoughts…

Putting forth a little effort to set up the perfect growing location for your orchids will be very beneficial in terms of your orchid growing success.

By learning how to care for an orchid and by providing it with the ideal environment, you are ensuring that you will be rewarded with an orchid that will be healthy and will be able to reach its full potential.