For many women, the most appropriate and pleasant gift are flowers, lovely ladies with great annoyance part with donated plants when they wither and have to be thrown away.
In order to avoid such disappointments, you should choose orchids, as they will please the representatives of the weaker sex for a long time.
Description of plants and photos
Tiger Orchid has a special charm, thanks to its “predatory” coloring.
The natural climate zone for the tiger orchid is the woodlands of Guatemala and Costa Rica.
Appearance
The foliage of this flower is oblong in shape, which from the bottom is covered with numerous dark brown specks. Duration of flowering is one month. Tiger orchids can be a different color, whether it is yellow, white, red with an unusual impregnation.
History of
The name “orchid” comes from Greece. One of the students of Plato found this extraordinary beautiful flower and gave it the name “orchis”. The tiger orchid got its name due to its “predatory color”.
South America, the Andes and Venezuela is considered the birthplace of tiger orchids.
What is the difference from other species?
The main difference between tiger orchids and other species is the tiger coloring.which gives the flower a special look. Suborts of this orchid species There are the following tiger orchid subports:
- Faro.
- Ever Spring King.
- Kanjer
- Vaslensia.
- Red Alert.
Bloom
When and how?
The average duration of flowering tiger orchids - three months, two or three times a year. The plant must be mature enough. To determine its age, you can look at the shoots, they should be 5-8. Orchid inflorescences are large, and produce a very pleasant aroma. Buds open gradually, and this process takes about a day. In a day you can enjoy the beauty of the orchid.
Peculiarities of home care
Requires regular watering plants.- A fair amount of sunny color.
- Arrangement in a transparent plastic pot. This material has a positive effect on the root system of the orchid.
- Maintain proper indoor temperature. In the afternoon 20-24 degrees, at night - 15-18.
- Properly chosen fertilizer. For an orchid to bloom, it needs to be enriched with potassium and phosphorus.
Requires regular watering plants.What if it does not bloom?
To flower regularly pleased with its flowering, you must follow a number of rules:
- Do not move the pot unnecessarily.. Tiger Orchid is a very delicate and capricious plant. Moving the pot from one edge of the window sill to the other is very traumatic for the flower.
If the movement of a plant is impossible to avoid, you need to remember on which side of the flower the sunlight fell, it is with this side that you will have to put it to the sun in a new place. You need to water the orchid carefully, and not move it.
- Know the age of the flower. Usually, tiger orchids begin to bloom between the ages of 1.5 and 3 years. Therefore, if the flower does not have a year, then you should not expect it to bloom in the near future.
- Pay due attention to plant roots.. In order for the plant to bloom, it is imperative that the sun be on the roots of the orchid.
- sunlight. The flower should be on the sunny side, as this is the key to beautiful flowering.
- Periodic decrease in temperature at 4-6 degrees at night. This can be achieved by regular airing of the room.
- Create stressful conditions for the plant. Sometimes, if you stop watering a flower, or move it to a colder place, you can achieve flowering of tiger orchids.
Step-by-step instructions for plant care
Choosing a place
From the first days of the appearance of this beauty, it is necessary to find a suitable place for her. In order for the flower to please the eye with regular flowering, it should be put on the windows of the southern and eastern direction. - preparation of soil and pot You can make your own soil for tiger orchids.. For this you will need:
Moss. The best time to collect it is spring.- Pine Bark. This ingredient can be found at any time of the year, but you should choose it correctly. The bark should be taken from fallen trees or at their feet. Pieces that were spoiled by bark beetles should be avoided. The thickness of the bark should be 1-2 cm.
- Fern roots. They contain a large amount of nutrients that are needed for orchids growing in the home.
- Auxiliary materials. Other ingredients of the soil can be charcoal, walnut.
Moss. The best time to collect it is spring.Temperature
The temperature is not the last place to maintain the tiger orchid in the apartment. It should not be too high, the flowers will not stand for long if the room is 30 degrees of heat for more than two days. They also do not tolerate low temperatures. Balance is needed, the room should be well heated and regularly ventilated. Acceptable temperature for an orchid is 20-24 degrees during the day, and 15-18 degrees at night..
Humidity
To maintain moisture, the flowers must be sprayed in the hot season, but these actions should be excluded in the cold months, as the petals may appear stains, and the orchid may rot.
Lighting
Tiger orchids are in need of sunlight.. Their bloom is quite beautiful when receiving the required amount of sun.
Watering
Tiger orchid grows better in drought than in excessive moisture. It is necessary to avoid excessive watering the flower. It is recommended to water the flower twice a week in the summer and once every 7 days in the winter.
Top dressing
Should know that There are a number of conditions under which you should not feed the plant:
- Do not fertilize the tiger orchid for a month after transplantation.
- A weakened plant or damaged by pests should also not be fed.
- It is forbidden to fertilize this flower during the period of active flowering.
Before fertilizing the plant, it is necessary to water the orchid until the root is completely wetted, and only after that it should be fed with special fertilizers. There is foliar top dressing and leaf.
Top dressing should be with the necessary level of acidity and with the concentration of essential nutrients.
Transfer
One day, the day comes when the tiger orchid needs to be transplanted. The reasons may be different, for example, she is more than three years old, and the plant is clearly cramped in an old container, or else the pot has broken. Transplantation should be carried out carefully and according to the rules..
Orchid should be transplanted in non-flowering condition.
To transplant this flower should be approached seriously, because with the slightest wrong action, the plant may die. You must have a substrate, a transparent plastic pot, activated carbon, scissors or a knife, and of course the flower itself.
- This variety of orchid should be soaked in water to make it easier to get out of the pot. Moreover, this way less damage is done to the roots.
- It is necessary to remove all rotten roots and components of the substrate with a knife or scissors, rinse the root with warm water.
- Then the plant should be left to dry for 20 minutes.
- Plant cuts should be powdered with activated carbon.
- Orchid roots must be placed in a new pot gradually and in parallel to pour the substrate.
- The transplanted flower must be fixed in a pot, and after the procedure is completed, water the plant.
How to multiply?
There are several ways to reproduce tiger orchids.
- The first way is to branch of the radical babesfrom which a new flower can grow.
- Branch kids on orchid peduncle. On the sleeping buds you can find them and grow a new orchid.
- Growing a new flower from the deceased. If the orchid for some reason has died, you should not throw it away, because on the orchid's “stump” you can find one or two children, from which you can get a new, more flowering plant.Children from "hemp" usually grow very well and easily perceive separation and transplantation.
Diseases and pests
With the wrong care, this orchid variety starts to hurt, as well as its begin to attack pests. In this case, the plant can not only get sick, but also die.
If a flower receives an insufficient amount of nutrition, then it forms growths that quickly complete growth.
Fungi, bacteria, viruses cause various infectious diseases.. If the plant is not provided with proper care and treatment, it will soon die.
The most common pests are:
- Shchitovka. They slow down plant growth, and appear due to dry air. You can get rid of them with the help of special chemicals.
- Pemphigus - These are white insects that damage the leaves of the tiger orchid. They also appear due to dry air. Eliminated by soap-alkaline solution, in the case of a strong defeat used chemicals.
- Aphid. These insects of green or black color cause the germination of fungi and viruses on the flower. They attack the plant when the thermoregulation is disturbed in the room. You can get rid of aphids with a milky-water mixture.
Tiger orchid is considered one of the most beautiful varieties of this flower, but in order to please the eye, you need to put a lot of effort to achieve regular flowering. However, the beauty of the plant is worth all the sacrifices.
