PLANTING AND MAINTENANCE OF ORCHID

1. Land Preparation
Orchid plants can be planted around the house or yard or in the garden under the shade of a tree or a given paranet or the like with a certain light intensity settings, or in open fields. Therefore orchid plant has a high economic potential, then for certain types can be planted in the greenhouses (green house). In addition to protecting plants from natural disturbances, also will reduce the intensity of attacks OPT.


2. Media Preparation Plant
A good growing medium must meet several requirements, ie not decaying quickly, not a source of disease, has good aeration, capable of binding water and nutrient substances are good, easy to obtain the desired amount and the relatively cheap price. Until now there has been no media that meets all the requirements for the growth of orchid plants.

For the growth of orchid plants, medium acidity (pH) ranged from good 5-6. Growing media is essential for growth and optimum production rates, so that there is need for an effort to find a suitable growing medium. Growing media that is often used in Indonesia, among others: moss, ferns, wood shavings, bits of wood, coconut fiber, charcoal, and pine bark.

Broken bricks widely used as basic medium pot of orchids, because it can absorb more water when compared with the fractional tiles. Media broken bricks used as the basis for the pot, because it has a drainage capacity and good aeration.

Moss containing 2-3% N elements have long been used for the medium to grow orchids. Media moss has a binding power of good water, and aeration and drainage have good also.

Ferns suitable for orchids because the media has a binding power of water, aeration and good drainage, decaying slowly, and contain nutrient elements required for the growth of orchids.

Easy coconut fibers easily become weak and rotten, so it can be a source of disease, but the water was very well kept and contain nutrient elements required and easily available and cheap price. In the use of coconut fibers as the medium grows, coconut fibers should be selected elderly.

Coconut coir growing media, ferns, and moss is a good growing medium for the growth of Phalaenopsis orchid plant sp. But when the ferns and moss growing in the forest is taken continuously for use as a medium to grow, it is feared the balance of the ecosystem will be disturbed.

Wood shavings or pieces of wood less suitable for orchids because the media has aeration and good drainage, but the power to save water is not good, and poor elements of N. Weathering processes are slow, because the wood contains compounds that are difficult decomposed as cellulose, lignin, and Hemicellulose.

Media teak wood shavings are a good growing medium for growing orchids Aranthera James Stories. Charcoal fragments are not decayed quickly, not easily overgrown with fungi and bacteria, but difficult to tie the water and nutrient poor. But good enough charcoal to the media orchids.

The use of new media (repotting) performed are as follows:

When planted in pots (containers) are too dense or more buds.
Medium long been destroyed, resulting in acidic medium, could be a source of disease.

3. Watering
Orchid plants are actively growing, require more water than is already flowering. The frequency and amount of water spray applied to plants depends on the type of orchid and the small size of plants, and planting environmental conditions. For example, orchids are Vanda sp., Arachnis sp., And Renanthera sp., Monopodial type of orchid that grows in direct sunlight, so the need watering more than twice a day, especially during the dry season.

4. Fertilizing
Like other plants, orchids always need food to sustain life. Orchid plant needs for nutrients with other plants, orchids only require a long time to show symptoms of deficiency, binding very slow growth of orchids.

In the cultivation of orchids, their habitats are not quite able to provide the elements needed by plants for growth. To overcome this, the plants were given fertilizer usually either organic or inorganic. Commonly used fertilizer compound fertilizer containing the macro and micro elements.

The quality and quantity of fertilizer can adjust the balance of vegetative and generative growth of plants. At the vegetative growth phase for young plants giving NPK fertilizer ratio is 30:10:10, the vegetative growth phase for a medium-sized plant of NPK fertilizer ratio is the provision of 10:10:10. While the generative growth phase is to stimulate flowering, provision of fertilizer NPK ratio is 10:30:30.

If done fertilization to potted the only fertilizer that dissolves in water and direct contact with the tip of the roots to be taken by the orchid plant and the remainder will remain in the pot. Fertilization in the afternoon showed a good response to growth in orchid Dendrobium sp.