Detailed Explanation of Light Requirements and Techniques for Orchid Cultivation

The orchid shed is best made movable. You can split thick thatch bamboo to build the shed; when building the shed, the spacing between the bamboo strips should be about 50 percent. If a bamboo strip is three fen wide, leave a gap of three fen. In summer, from the fifth to the eighth lunar month (lunar calendar is used below), add another layer of movable shade net; from 12 noon to 4 pm, pull the shade net open to block the sunlight, and at night gather it up to take in mist. All plants need mist. Some people grow orchids very "stiffly," mainly because at night they pull the shade net fully closed over the whole orchid shed to take in mist. I think it is not good to use only shade nets entirely, because the light from the net is too even, while what orchid plants need is rhythmic light. I advocate that the shading of the orchid shed be made movable as much as possible. This way the orchids grown can both get sunlight and also have a high rate of producing new growths. I think building a bamboo shed with 50 percent shading, then adding a layer of 70 percent shade net; when the weather is cloudy, pull it closed and use only the bamboo for shade. Every morning after I finish drinking tea and come back, I observe the orchid shed a bit; by mealtime, if the sunlight is strong, I pull the net open. Apart from this, I will talk about the growing medium for planting orchids; what is mainly used is sawdust. (China fir sawdust) together with chaff ash, bone meal, (when buying bone meal, you must try it with your tongue; if it tastes salty or has impurities, do not use it.) honeycomb coal ash, humus soil, charcoal powder, etc. For dividing orchids, the best way is: taking the child and mother shoots, if you want to seek quantity and maintain quality, it is not necessarily best to separate every single shoot; split off the child shoot, and let another child shoot stay with the mother shoot. Orchids need stimulation; once you split them, they grow better. If these two shoots, the child and mother, produce only one child shoot, then in February of the following year I cut once at the connection point of the orchid, give it a stimulus, or twist it a little, to make the old shoot produce another child shoot. I definitely do not let it produce a single bud; I want every generation of the orchid to produce two shoots. (Han Zhicheng)