A Simple Method for Growing Orchids at Home: Growing Orchids in Moss

      Orchidsare very elegant indoor ornamental plants, especially the Chinese orchids (CymbidiumCymbidium goeringii，Cymbidium ensifolium, Chun Jian,Cymbidium faberiand other terrestrial orchids); the captivating fragrance of their flowers has long been admired by the ancients. At the same time, they fear harsh sun exposure, and are also very typical indoor green plants. The orchid culture formed over thousands of years has influenced the flower-appreciation aesthetics of some neighboring countries (such as Japan, South Korea, etc.). In the past dozen years or so, as our country's living standards have gradually improved and indoor living environments have improved, people's demand for displaying and appreciating Chinese orchids indoors has also greatly increased. But whenorchidsare mentioned, everyone thinks they are very difficult to keep alive, so the problem oforchidsbeing difficult to grow has also hindered orchids from further entering more households.
      Are orchids (I mean Chinese orchids, the same below) really so difficult to grow? Based on my personal experience, orchids are among the easiest plants of all to grow; as long as you mainly master root aeration, ensure moisture, and provide a certain degree of light, they can be kept alive.
•     Here I introduce a very simple method that guarantees a 100% survival rate for your orchids. Management (mainly watering management) is fairly flexible, making it very suitable for ordinary indoor households (it actually works poorly in large-scale orchid nurseries).
     To grow orchids well, choosing the growing medium is the most critical thing. When you choose the growing medium, you are also determining whether the orchid seedlings will survive in the future. Because theorchid'smain growth requirements are: first, aeration; second, water retention; third, nutrients; fourth, suitable light. Aeration and water retention are the most difficult techniques to master in orchid growing (in theorchid-growingworld there is a saying that watering takes ten years of practice). Orchids have fleshy roots and need good aeration. Water is a necessary condition for the growth of all plants, yet the two are a contradictory pair. Too much water will squeeze the air out of the growing medium, making the roots unable to breathe and die; no water is even worse, and any plant will die. Therefore, it is very important to find a growing medium that is both breathable and water-retentive, and in which the amount of watering and the length of the watering interval do not have too great an effect on orchids. For ordinary growing media, as long as you master the amount of watering and the interval, orchids can grow very well. But a year hasfour seasons, and countries have north and south; temperature changes make the amount of watering and the interval very difficult to master, causing many people's orchids to either drown or die of thirst. Of course, more drown than die of thirst. Therefore, a good growing medium is one in which watering more or less, and watering at longer or shorter intervals, has little effect onorchids.
     The growing medium I introduce has exactly this characteristic: moss (sphagnum moss, green moss, etc.), as shown in the picture: 

This is a wild-collectedCymbidium tortisepalumthat has been grown in moss for 3 months. Judging from the leaves, the growth is still quite normal. Now let's see how the roots are. Lift off the moss on the surface, as shown in the picture:

The roots are growing well, and new roots are sprouting vigorously. Take it out of the pot to see how the lower part of the roots is doing! 

 The roots below are also growing perfectly. How about that, this method is pretty good, right!

     Sphagnum moss is a type of bryophyte belonging to the Sphagnaceae family, also known as peat moss. It can be divided into coarse-leaved peat moss and fine-leaved peat moss. Generally speaking, it grows in humid places or swamps in tropical and subtropical mountainous areas at relatively high altitudes above 800 m. Its length is generally about 8 cm-30 cm. Its pH value is generally between 5-6. Sphagnum moss is very soft in texture and extremely strong in water absorption; its water absorption is equivalent to 15---20 times its own weight, and it has very good special effects such as water retention, fertilizer retention, and aeration. Therefore, sphagnum moss can create goodcultivationconditions for higher indoor ornamental plants, and is widely used in thecultivationof various tropical orchids, and is the main growing medium for growing tropical orchids. Taiwan, China is an important producing area of tropical orchids in the world, and every year it imports large amounts of sphagnum moss from foreign countries as a growing medium for tropical orchids.
    Because sphagnum moss has the characteristics of excellent aeration and strong water retention, using it to grow Chinese orchids is theoretically very good. For this reason, I actually cultivated with sphagnum moss; I have more than a dozen pots of orchids, and it has been almost 2 years now, with very satisfactory results. Please look at the examples:

   This is a pot of Jinsi Mawei (Cymbidium ensifolium) 

It is very convenient to take out of the pot, right? You can check the root growth at any time. Take it out of the pot and look at the roots. 

Below is a pot of Cymbidium ensifolium Dahe Su 

Below is Dendrobium grown in moss, growing very well 

The main advantages of using moss as a growing medium are:
    1. The growing medium is relatively easy to obtain. If it is available locally, you can collect it locally; if not, you can buy it at the market or online. The price is not expensive. As an orchid growing medium, the quality difference is not great; as long as it is natural and not artificially dyed, it is fine.
    2. Potting is very simple. Prepare a suitable flower pot, put some foam blocks at the bottom of the pot to increase aeration, then use sphagnum moss to wrap the roots relatively loosely, put it into the flower pot, then use sphagnum moss to cover the pot surface completely, and when it looks attractive and suitable, the potting process is complete.
    3. Watering management is very flexible. After planting, you can water it. You can water every day, or once a week; any amount of water is fine. Excess water will flow out on its own and will not accumulate, so it is relatively easy to master.
    4. Clean, tidy, and lightweight. If what you buy is relatively pure sphagnum moss, it has almost no soil. Wash it with water before use and it is very clean. It will not bring soil out of the pot because of watering. Also, a pot with orchids planted in it is very light, so it can be moved and placed at will.
    5. You can lift the sphagnum moss on the pot surface at any time to check root growth, which is helpful for observation.
    6. If you water relatively frequently and the humidity is relatively high, the fresh sphagnum moss laid on the pot surface can generally survive. The emerald green sphagnum moss set off against the upright orchids will add much beauty to the pot of orchids.
    Regarding light and fertilizing, it is the same as orchids grown in other growing media, but it is best to use compound chemical fertilizer, which is clean, convenient, and will not produce odors or pollute the environment. Dilute a compound fertilizer with 15% each of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium in water at one part per thousand, and apply once a month. You can also lift the sphagnum moss on the pot surface, sprinkle an appropriate amount (not exceeding 1 gram) of compound fertilizer granules near the roots, then cover it back with sphagnum moss and water; it will slowly dissolve and be absorbed.
     Special point: because sphagnum moss is very loose and has relatively large gaps, over time the sphagnum moss in the lower part of the pot will become humified. The orchid roots below will have no attachment material, which will affect the lower roots' absorption of nutrients, and the pot surface will show some sinking (you can feel it by gently pressing the sphagnum moss on the pot surface with your hand). Therefore, after half a year, you need to add sphagnum moss to the lower roots. It is very convenient: support the pot surface with your palm (with the orchid seedlings appropriately clamped between your fingers), turn the pot upside down, hold the outer side of the orchid pot with the other hand, and gently try to pull it out. After feeling that the growing medium and the pot have loosened, turn the orchid pot upright, lift gently, and the whole growing medium will come out of the pot completely in one piece. Check the roots, fill the large gaps in the lower part of the roots with fresh sphagnum moss (an appropriate amount), and then you can put it back into the pot in its original position. It has almost no effect on the roots, and you can immediately carry out normal placement and management (note: during the operation, do not destroy the integrity formed by the sphagnum moss and the roots).
    It sounds very complicated, but it is very simple to do. If the needed items are ready, growing a pot of orchids in sphagnum moss takes only about 2 minutes. It is truly done in minutes.
    After reading this post, are you a little tempted? Hurry up and take action!
    I do not know whether this whole introduction is comprehensive. If you have any questions, you can leave a message and we can discuss them together.
    The process of growing orchids is more interesting than appreciating them. The feeling of fishing should be much better than eating fish, right!