These guides are written for growers who want reliable, detailed information on raising healthy orchids in Orchiata.

Each is tailored to a specific orchid type, such as Phalaenopsis, Cattleya, Cymbidium, and more, and covers everything from choosing the right pot and grade of Orchiata to irrigation, fertilizing, light, water quality, repotting, and troubleshooting.

Whether you’re producing orchids commercially or growing them as a passion, these guides give you practical, step-by-step support to get the best from your plants in Orchiata.

Bulbophyllum are the largest genus in the orchid family, with species deriving from the high and low altitude rain and cloud forests of most tropical and subtropical countries. They have remarkable variation in their growth habit, ranging from fully terrestrial species to giant epiphytic climbers. They can bloom directly from the rhizome or the growth, depending on the species. They are a diverse group of plants that can often be grown together. They are a good genus to cultivate and relatively forgiving.

Cattleya orchids and relatives are native to Central and South American rainforests and are low to high altitude, warm cultured (with some notable exception as Cattleya Dowiana, some Maxima, some Rupicolous Laelia) or lithotropic (grow on rock outcrops) orchids. Cattleya generally have a pseudobulb with either a singular thick leaf (unifoliate) or two leaves (bifoliate) protruding from the bulb. Flowers are singular or clustered, large, bright and often scented. Unifoliate Cattleya have thick leaves used for water storage as well as the bulbs; therefore, these plants can go considerable amounts of time without water. Although there are many types within this alliance, including cool, intermediate and warm types, this guide gives a good idea of methods for growing these brilliant orchids. This will allow you to grow hybrids and many popular species, with notable differences mentioned, such as Laelia Anceps, as they are popular on their own.

This guideline for growing Cymbidiums in Orchiata is aimed at helping the grower to ensure that any areas of concern have some guidance. It is important, however, to remember that growing and climate conditions will differ from greenhouse to greenhouse and country to country. The guide refers to Cymbidiums in general, although it is well known that there are both heat and non-heat-tolerant varieties as well as terrestrial and epiphytic. From experience, different Cymbidiums will generally grow in similar conditions, with specific varieties needing extra care.

The following is a guideline for growing Dendrobium commercial varieties of orchids in Orchiata and Spagmoss. It is aimed at helping ensure that any areas of concern have some guidance or referral. A quick guide is also available for ease of use. Note that pot sizes and climate conditions will change according to the growers. Adjustments will have to be made depending on their conditions, especially for the different varieties grown. Remember, this is just a guide.

Native to South Africa, Disa orchids grow as a bog plant on the outskirts of cool swamps. They are naturally high altitude plants and prefer cooler temperatures. Disa Uniflora are the more common types grown; flowers ranging in colour from bright red to cool yellows on firm stalks, good for cut flowers. These plants are generally evergreen and are easily grown from tubers. Note that in South Africa, it is a common practice to grow Disa without the tuber stage; new growth is induced shortly after the plant blooms, and the tuber stage is avoided. It is a technique that allows for faster growth, but it also carries the risk of killing the plant. As a result, many cultivars from South Africa have disappeared. In New Zealand or Europe, bulbs would be allowed to form, which provides additional safety in case of culture problems. Today, most of the older varieties are exceedingly rare or even extinct due to a lower number of breeders still working commercially. The new varieties are still interesting, but some colours and shapes no longer exist.

This group of orchids encompass a range of plants which bear colourful, long-lasting flowers on top of vigorous growth. Epidendrum is a good novice orchid plant for its easy-growing habitat. Native to the Americas, they are variable in habitat, with some being lithotropic and some terrestrial. The so-called ‘Mini Epidendrum’ are in fact a hybrid of Epiphronitis Veitchii, a very strange hybrid that was only made once, which was supposedly sterile. It appears that one individual plant out of a tissue culture of that hybrid was fertile, which opened the door to all the miniature Epidendrum used as pot plants today.

Masdevallia orchids are a very colourful genus of orchids native to South American countries, like Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia and Venezuela. Their natural habitat is a cool cloud forest where the air is humid, and the light is medium. They have beautiful, delicate flowers ranging in colour from whites, yellows, oranges, to highlighter pinks and purples. This group also encompasses the Dracula orchid, which grows at even higher altitudes. Some species and even some cultivars of normally cold species can grow at high temperatures, such as some of the Dracula Vampira. It is not fully correct to say that they are cold-growing plants; only that their roots need to be kept cold, in a way similar to the Disa. In fact it can be explained in part by the dissolved gases level in water where the maximal gas dissolution occurs at lower temperatures and no gas can be dissolved at higher temperatures.

Miltoniopsis orchids are native to the Andean and Central American regions, like Peru. They are very colourful orchids with flowers resembling large pansies. Miltonia and Miltoniopsis can be distinguished by the fact that Miltonia have two leaf Pseudobulbs and Miltoniopsis has only one leaf per pseudobulb; their cultivation can be treated the same, however. They are not the easiest of orchids to grow and are therefore left for more enthusiastic growers. It may be that their culture is poorly understood by some growers.

The following is a guideline for growing Odontoglossum and its relatives. This group of orchids include Oncidiums and other genera native to the Central American regions. The general requirements for each genus are the same; however, temperature will generally differ due to the differences in native altitudes. Odontoglossum are usually native to high altitudes in the Andes, where temperatures are much lower. Oncidiums, however, are native to lower altitudes in some coastal regions. Both these plants grow all year round in various growing conditions and contain a variety of beautifully coloured flowers, which are easy to grow in the proper conditions.

This guideline for growing Phalaenopsis in Orchiata is aimed at helping the grower to ensure that any areas of concern have some guidance. A quick guide is also available for ease of use. Note that pot sizes and climate conditions will change according to the grower, and adjustments will have to be made depending on these conditions, especially for the different varieties grown. Remember, this is just a guide.

Vanda are an interesting orchid that can be grown without a growing medium. Native to the Himalayas, Asia, Australia, and New Guinea, some of the most popular species are epiphytic plants which grow on various parts of trees. Vanda has very robust aerial roots which extract moisture from the atmosphere. These orchids are grown for their stunning floral colour, which may occur throughout the year. Some related genera, such as the Mokara and Dimorphorchis, are partially terrestrial and require much wetter conditions at their roots. Bare root basked culture is preferred as a convenience by most growers; however, stunning specimens have been seen in pots.

Zygopetalum are a relatively easy species to grow and can be treated rather similarly to Cymbidiums, although damper conditions can be tolerated. They are naturally epiphytic or terrestrial with relatively sombre coloured blooms – greens and purples. Their main attractive feature is their startlingly beautiful scent, which means they are sought after when in flower. Most types have pseudobulb storage organs, which allow them to be divided.