Although the species of your orchid will be the final determinant, as a rule it would be wise for you to remove the plant to a cooler and drier place that that in which it was grown. This will help the flowers to last much longer than in a warm and moist greenhouse or other typical growing room.

Most orchids will not suffer by being place in a drier and cooler location when they are in bloom. Most will derive positive benefit from it. Still , you should make sure that the temperature where you place your blossoming orchid should not fall below 50 degrees Fahrenheit at night.

Here's an experiment you can carry out if you happen to have two orchids of the same variety which come into bloom at around the same time. Leave one in your growing room, and put the other in a cool, dry place as suggested above. You will almost certainly notice that the one in your "cool room" will have fresh flowers for a significantly longer time than the one that was left behind.

Naturally, the flowers of even the best-cared-for orcnhids will eventually begin to fade. When this happens, then you can move the plant back into its warm growing room. Just be sure to shade it from the sun until it re-adjusts to warmer surroundings. Otherwise it can become scorched.

One of the keys to success in growing orchids is to understand their life cycles and the different stages they go through. Every stage requires a different kind of care, and the blossoming stage has its own unique "rules.".

The most complete guide to expert orchid growing, beyond question, is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which is available to be downloaded online. Howard's clearly written guide will furnish a full education on the subject. Also, be sure to visit the Orchid Secrets web site, which contains a growing database of information on all topics of orchid cultivation.

Proceed this way: Take an orchid plant having at least four or five back pseudobulbs. Slice the rhizome in two between the bulbs, taking care not to otherwise disturb it. That's basically it, but here are some things to keep in mind:

• The best time to cut most orchids is during their resting phase, usually fall or winter. When they again enter their growing phase you may then observe them producing two growths from one pseudobulb where you have cut it.
• Don't ever cut an orchid unless you are sure it is in perfect or near-perfect health. Cutting, as outlined above, will not hurt a healthy orchid, but could prove too stressful to one that is sickly.
• By cutting the same plant for back shoots year after year, you will end up with an orchid that is both much larger and much more stunning than it would have been otherwise. This is the way some of the astonishing specimens are produced that you see in orchid shows.

There is more that can be said about the art of cutting to produce more blooms, as well as the process of taking cuttings to start more plants. To learn more about these and other secrets of orchid cultivation, a respected guide such as that authored by Nigel Howard is highly recommended.

The most thorough guide to contemporary orchid cultivation, beyond question, is Mr. Howard's Orchid Care Expert, which can be downloaded online. Mr. Howard's ebook is a full education in itself, suitable for beginners as well as the more experienced. Also, check out the Orchid Secrets web site, which features an ever-growing database of information on many topics of orchid cultivation.

A good general practice is to allow your orchids rest from November through the middle of February. The way you do this is by lowering the thermostat and not watering as much.

For orchids that originate in hot or very warm regions, you should keep the temperature at about 60 0r 65. For species from cooler climes, you can let the temperature drop to as low as 45 degrees Fahrenheit.

At this time, give your orchids only enough water to keep them from shriveling. Most of the moisture should be supplied by misting or by taking measures to keep the air humid. Occasionally, though, you should poke down into the soil and examine the stem, roots and rooting medium of your plants. If these are beginning to dry out you can water them directly.

Some species will continue to grow during the winter months. These will required somewhat more water than those that truly go dormant. If you see new shoots coming up, though, try to avoid wetting them or they else they could rot.

Some orchids are deciduous. This means they will drop their leaves after they have finished their growth for the year. You need to give these as much sun and light during their resting time as you can. This will allow their pseuduobulbs to ripen, which in turn causes them to grow stronger and flower more freely.

Proper orchid care is not that hard or mysterious. Avoiding all problems, though, requires a good bit more information than can be covered in a short space. The most up-to-date guide to today's orchid cultivation, many growers agree, is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which may be downloaded online. Mr. Howard's guide is a full education in itself, appropriate for the novice as well as the more experienced. Also, be sure to visit the Orchid Secrets web site, which has a growing library of postings on many aspects of orchid cultivation.

Orchids originate within a tremendous variety of environments which differ from one another in many respects. As a result, you will find that some species produce flowers early in spring, others in summer and yet others during the greay days of winter. Their times for beginning their seasonal growth also varies; nevertheless, for convenience, feel free to rest all of your orchids over the winter. The majority of these will begin pushing out shoots as soon as the earth begins warming up in the spring.

When orchids are in their growing periods (as opposed to their dormancy), they must be treated differently with respect to heat, based on where they originated. East Indian orchids require the most heat. Inside, maintain the air temperature around them at 65 degrees Fahrenheit at night and 70 degrees at day. Outdoors they will thrive at up to 75 degrees in the early spring, and temperatures as high as 85 or even 90 are acceptable during the high summer months. Just be sure to shade the plants from the direct rays of the sun at these times.

Therefore, this type of orchid must be well supplied with atmospheric moisture at all times. Make sure they are misted frequently! As well, you can simply pour water over the tables and paths of your greenhouse or other growing area. If you do this every day it will produce a nice, moist heat to rise.

Brazilian orchids actually come from a cooler climate, one in which the air is not nearly as moisture-saturated. These, natrually, need both less heat and less moisture, but they do require warmth during the peak growing time. Orchids from Mexico are much the same. They should be heated artificially to approximately 60 degrees at night and 65 or 70 by day during the spring. As days lengthen the temperature may be allowed to increase so that during the months of May through August the night heat may range from 65 to 70 and
by day from 70 to 85 degrees.

Then we come to the so-called cool orchids, which should be grown in an area to themselves, if possible. These plants originate in such places as Ecuador and Peru, where they grow high on mountainsides. Lower temperatures are called for when growing these. Try 45 to 55 degrees in the winter and 50 to 65 in the summer. However you grow them, you must ensure that they are shaded from the sun most of the time. Too much heat can prove deadly to the cool orchids!

There are many other groups and subgroups of orchids, too many to go over them all here. If you want to learn more, the best and most thorough guide to modern orchid growing, beyond question, is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which may be downloaded on the web. There are many books on the subject of orchids, but Mr. Howard's guide constitutes a thorough education all to itself. And, you will find it suitable for beginners as well as more seasoned orchid growers. Also, visit the Orchid Secrets web site, which has a growing database of postings on many aspects of orchids.

Orchids, similar to other plants, have very particular likes and dislikes as to the water provided them to nourish their roots. Most of them dislike hard water. Unfortunately, the water that comes out of the taps in many areas is too hard for orchids to respond as well as we might like. Rarely will hard water kill them. But it may retard their growth or prevent them from blooming as gorgeously as they might.

A saving grace about orchids is that they have thick, fleshy roots that can stand up to hard water better than many other sorts of plants. Woody plants, as an example, with their fine root system, are easily killed by water that is overly hard. Nevertheless you should take measures to avoid putting hard water on your orchids.

You can of course buy filters that fit on your water line to soften the water while removing various types of impurities. But nothing beats good old rainwater when it comes to doing right by orchids! After all, this is the form of water that nature supplies to plants the world over.

Many companies produce rain barrels that are great for collecting and holding rainwater until you want to use it. Many homeowners set the barrels up beneath the rainspouts coming from their roofs. With some planning and work, you could set up a bank of barrels to direct water directly to your orchid plants. Then your watering task, assuming you live in a fairly rainy area, becomes almost hands off.

Whatever kind of water you use, don't put it on your plants if it is chilly. For instance, I would not use water that I got from an outside tap on a cold day, without first bringing it to room temperature in my home or in the greenhouse. Cold water can result in spots on the plants, rot the new growths and damage the roots.

Some orchids will get benefit from water with a little lime mixed with it. In years gone by, people noticed that imported Cypripedium orchids often were covered in chalky lime deposits owing to the plants having grown in limestone rock crevices where the water trickled down upon them. So if you have a Cypripedium, you could try adding lime to its water, a little at first and then more if you determine that the plant is responding well to it.

The art and science of orchid cultivation is a fascinating topic. Orchid growing is not as hard as some people make it out to be, but you need to arm yourself with solid information before plunging in to this rewarding pastime. 

The most up-to-date guidebook to contemporary orchid growing, many agree, is Orchid Care Expert by a Mr. Nigel Howard, which can be downloaded from the Internet. Howard's well-written guide is a comprehensive education all to itself. And, you will find it perfect for novices as well as the more seasoned orchid growers. As well, check out this Orchid Secrets web site, which contains a growing library of articles on a broad range of facets of orchid care.

Certainly, of course, many other plants were greatly admired in the Anglo-Saxon world of the latter half of the 19th century.Among these were ferns, cacti, chrysanthemums, palms and roses. But orchids to a much greater degree represented the summit of horticultural respectability in the 19th century garden. So highly were these mostly tropical epiphytes esteemed that in May of 1885 the first general conference on orchids was held in London. The gala event brought together amateur as well as commercial growers to show off their prized specimens and to discuss important issues, including the culture and nomenclature of these marvelous flowers.

At the time of that great conference in London, the exotic tropical orchids had been known to most of the world for only around a hundred years. The Spanish botanist Francisco Hernandez casually mentioned a few orchids as curiosities in his account of his 16th-century voyage to Spanish America. Some 200 years later, naturalist Engelbert Kaempfer and botanist Georg Eberhard Rumphius, employed by the Dutch East Indies Company, described several of the Asian orchids. But it wasn't until just before the beginning of the 19th century that Europeans in general became aware of these mysterious and exciting plants.

By the early 1800s, botanists were working on cultivating a few specimens at such places as Kew Gardens in London. Until 1820 orchids were looked upon as curiosities in botanical gardens, but about that time some showy Cattleyas and other species produced some stunning flowers, piqueing greater interest among the public. By the 1850s new specimens of orchids were pouring into Europe from all over the world and more and more people were trying to cultivate them at home.

The orchid craze was in full swing by the late 19th century and continued unabated for many years to come. Somewhat suprisingly, a solid scientific understanding of orchid botany and what was needed to be consistently successful in growing orchids did not arrive until the 1920s.

Nowadays, of course, we have an abundance of good information on the proper way to grow orchids. The most up-to-date guidebook to modern orchid cultivation, it is widely acknowedged, is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which may be downloaded over the Internet. Howard's wonderful guide constitutes a complete education all to itself. And, it's appropriate for novices as well as more seasoned orchid cultivators. Also, visit the Orchid Secrets site, which features an ever-growing database of entries on many aspects of orchid cultivation.

Cattleya flies lay their eggs in the young growths of the orchid plant. The eggs hatch and then nymphs (or maggots) hatch and begin to feed voraciously. The nymphs quickly grow to a grotesque size within the bulbs. One sign that these maggots are doing their nasty work is that the bulbs themselves will swell becoming club-shaped at the part where the pests are munching away.

Eventually, the hungry little nymphs transform into adult flies, which chew their way through the fleshy bulbs to the outside. Adult flies are black in color, have transparent wings, and are about a quarter inch in length. Unfortunatelyy, by the time you notice them it might be too late to salvage some of your orchids. Nevertheless, you should always try to kill the flies before they can get their eggs into your remaining undamaged plants.

If you have plants that are already infected, the best course is to slice off any bulbs that are seen to be swelling more than is natural. Then, drown the nymph by dropping it into a bowl of water. It's disheartening to have to cut away your plant's young growth, but this is better than leaving your other plants open to being attacked by this pest. With luck, the plant that you had to do "surgery" on will grow a new bulb in place of the old one.

Now for the good news about Cattleya flies. They are fortunately not especially common, and most orchid growers will never see them. Still, it makes good sense to inspect every new orchid for the tell-tale signs of these flies and their maggots. Besides looking out for abnormally swollen bulbs where the fly's nymphs might be feeding, inspect for tiny holes where a female fly's ovipositor might have inserted eggs into the orchid. If you don't see any such signs, you are probably safe from Cattleya flies.

To be truly successful growing orchids it is important to know how to deal with all of the possible threats to your plants, including insects. It isn't as tricky to grow orchids as many people apparently believe, especially if you first read up on how to properly care for these fascinating plants.

The most up-to-date guide to today's orchid growing, more people are finding, is Orchid Care Expert by a Mr. Nigel Howard, which can be downloaded online. Howard's wonderful guide constitutes a comprehensive education all by itself. And, it is appropriate for beginning gardeners as well as more seasoned orchid cultivators. Also, be sure to visit the Orchid Secrets site, which features an ever-growing database of information on all facets of orchid care.

Europeans of course knew about their native orchid varieties, such as the lovely Bee Orchid. But familiarity with of the many splendiferous tropical orchids had to wait on the results of explorations of the jungles and mountains of South America and the East Indies. Even then, specimens only slowly wended their way to England and other parts of Europe.

Possibly the first living orchid to be taken from the tropics to England was an Epidendrum cochleatum, one of the more showy of its genus. It flowered in London in 1787. Another speciman from the same orchid family was imported in to England in the year 1778. It took 10 years for its caretakers to bring forth flowers from the plant.

Admiral William Bligh of Mutiny on the Bounty fame had a small part in laying the ground for the orchid craze. In the early 1790s he brought 15 species of epiphytal orchids to England from the West Indies. These were planted at the well-known Kew Gardens in London. For many years the West Indies, along with India, were the primary sources of tropical orchids in Europe. In 1793, however, a species of Oncidium was carried to England from Panama, followed a few years later by some orchids from Uruguay.

By 1818, Brazil was at the forefront of was contributing to what was becoming a steady stream of orchids back to England and other European lands. By 1830 the Royal Horticultural Society had sent representatives traveling throughout Brazil seeking out for rare species.

The orchid trade soon evolved into a serious profit making effort, with businessmen in Brazil entering in to contracts with their opposite numbers in London to send plants to England to be resold there. William Harrison, a merchant in Rio de Janeiro during the 1830s and 1840s, sent many wonderful orchids to his brother Richard in Liverpool. Richard's house quickly became a Mecca for orchid hobbyists who journeyed there to see the newest arrivals.

It was one thing to introduce orchids to Europe, but another thing altogether to cultivate orchids succesfully. For more than half a century England was known as the grave of tropical orchids. The plants that survived did so in spite of rather than because of the treatment they received. Growers kept experimenting and making mistakes until, by about 1850, they had largely figured out the art of orchid cultivation. That is when the orchid craze really exploded, because now the knowledge was available by which even non-botanists could grow these stunning plants.

Knowledge of successfully growing orchids has increased during the intervening years and now we know so much more than did those Victorian devotees. We also have, of course, better technology to assist us in the greenhouse and garden.

The most thorough guide to modern orchid care, in the opinion of many, is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which may be downloaded from the Internet. Howard's clearly written guide will furnish a thorough immersion in the subject. Also, visit the Orchid Secrets web site, which has an ever-growing database of articles on all facets of orchid cultivation.

One of the most important discoveries about orchids was the finding that some of the most ornamental species require less heat and less expensive growing equipment than was once thought necessary. The new knowledge showed that growing orchids was something anyone could have a go at.

In the 1800s, when the passion for orchids really blossomed, many would-be growers were at first discouraged by one major problem. World travelers sent home one exotic species after another, but often without any notes at all as to their local growing conditions. Orchids vary greatly in their needs, such as for light, heat and water, and not knowing a particular plant's unique requirements could and often did lead to disaster. "The want of some such information has been a source of extreme vexation to many lovers of these plants," complained one orchid enthusiast complained in 1885.

Nowadays we are much luckier with respect to understanding the orchids entrusted to our care. We can stand on the shoulders of other orchid lovers who carefully jotted down all they learned about each type and species of the plants that they encountered.

So, it is crucial to know what an orchid's native habitate and climate are like. Take that with a grain of salt, however. Usually, it's not wise to attempt to completely recreate a plant's natural habitat conditions. Within reason, it is possible to cultivate better looking orchids than nature produces by intelligently tampering with its environment. This is both art and science.

To again quote that writer in 1885: "We admit that we should by all means take nature as our guide for the production of good plants but it should be nature in her best garb only and then looking as we do upon cultivation as a help to nature the result can only be an improvement if success in the object aimed at has been attained."

So, what is a beginning orchid grower to do? How do you strike a balance between imitating nature and improving on it with the tools of modern horticulture? The only sure answer: Educate yourself. You can successfully grow orchids if you know what you're doing up-front.

One of the best and most complete guides to modern orchid growing is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which may be downloaded online. Now, there are lots of books about orchids but Mr. Howard's wonderful guide will provide a complete education on the subject. Also, check out the Orchid Secrets web site, which has a growing database of postings on many aspects of orchids.

What is it about flowers, in particular, that they have such a great appeal to human beings?. Many people are especially drawn to the most aristocratic of flowers, the orchid.

"Conquerers of the light" is just one of the admiring appelations that have been earned by orchids. They catch us up with their beauty when we first encounter them, and they continue ever after to pull us to them. Mother Nature has shown her liberality with the orchids. Their flowers are ever bright and elegant. Their fragrant odor is generally described as sweet, yet most people do not find it cloying in the least. They have a thin texture, making them appear frail and delicate, yet they can last longer in a vase than many ornamental flowers. Really, the only thing they "lack" from the standpoint of aesthetics is thick foliage. But this is not a serious deficiency: one can always fill the space around them with fern leaves for an attractive arrangement.

It was long believed that these marvelous flowers were exceptionally delicate and difficult to grow. This was an error. Orchids are in fact fairly simple to cultivate, and numerous weekend growers are capable of raising some of the loveliest specimens ever seen. The "trick," if you want to call it that, is to seek out accurate and complete information on orchid growing before acquiring your first plant. By educating yourself, you are almost assured of success; skip the learning phase and you are doomed to failure.

It is a common myth--yet a myth nonetheless--that orchids require high heat to thrive. Not true, I'm pleased to report! What has misled many people over the years is the fact that the orchid's native lands are mostly in the tropics. However, many orchids--in their native habitats--grow on mountainsides, high up in the cool, crisp Andean air. It would be a mistake to subject these coolness-hardy plants to high temperatures -- if the heat didn't kill them, it would at least stunt their development.

Whatever your present skills as a gardener, you can grow these loveliest of flowers. I'm sure you can imagine the joy of surprising someone with an orchid that you grew yourself. Envision yourself culitvating gorgeous orchids that are so good they win prizes. Picture yourself going so far with your orchid growing hobby that it becomes a business, perhaps one big enough to provide you with a living. Trust me, all of these things are possible to you.

One of the best and most complete guides to modern orchid growing is undoubtedly Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, available online. Howard's guide is really a complete course, and will teach something to experienced growers as well as complete neophytes. You might also want to visit the Orchid Secrets web site, which has a growing database of articles on all aspects of orchids.

Here's to your rewarding future with orchids, the royalty of flowers!