Orchids are the world's most exotic and fascinating flowers, with their extraordinary variety of sizes, shapes, colours and markings. These features make them highly priced among the ornamentals.

Even though the various species of orchids vary in their individual requirements of optimun temperature, generally orchids thrive in day temperature varying between 16 to 21 degree centigrade and night temperature between 13 to 16 degree centigrade.

Good quality water is very important requirement to grow orchids successfully. Acceptable water sources include deionized distilled water and rain water.

Three basic principles applied to the orchid nutrition include:

• Only well rooted plant should be nourished.
• The nutrition is preferable in small but frequent doses.
• It should only be applied during the period of maximum active growth.
• Foliar feeding with water soluble fertilizers is the best option.

Organic Nutrition
Inorganic Nutrition

There are three main methods of producing orchid plants: macro-vegetative (by dividing large plants, removing offsets and plantlets); micro-vegetative (by meristem or mericlonal culture, by growing and dividing small growing tissues in culture media) and by seed.

• Vegetative Propagation by Division
• Propagation by Seed
• Symbiotic Means

Selection of varieties depends mainly on the following factors:

• Manure and Fertilizers
• Disease
• Production
• Cost