Bulbs
Flower Basics
Flower Beds & Specialty Gardens
Flower Garden
Garden Furniture
Garden Gnomes
Garden Seeds
Garden Sheds
Garden Statues
Garden Tools & Supplies
Gardening Basics
Green & Organic
Groundcovers & Vines
Growing Annuals
Growing Basil
Growing Beans
Growing Berries
Growing Blueberries
Growing Cactus
Growing Corn
Growing Cotton
Growing Edibles
Growing Flowers
Growing Garlic
Growing Grapes
Growing Grass
Growing Herbs
Growing Jasmine
Growing Mint
Growing Mushrooms
Orchids
Growing Peanuts
Growing Perennials
Growing Plants
Growing Rosemary
Growing Roses
Growing Strawberries
Growing Sunflowers
Growing Thyme
Growing Tomatoes
Growing Tulips
Growing Vegetables
Herb Basics
Herb Garden
Indoor Growing
Landscaping Basics
Landscaping Patios
Landscaping Plants
Landscaping Shrubs
Landscaping Trees
Landscaping Walks & Pathways
Lawn Basics
Lawn Maintenance
Lawn Mowers
Lawn Ornaments
Lawn Planting
Lawn Tools
Outdoor Growing
Overall Landscape Planning
Pests, Weeds & Problems
Plant Basics
Rock Garden
Rose Garden
Shrubs
Soil
Specialty Gardens
Trees
Vegetable Garden
Yard Maintenance
How Long Does It Take Orchids to Mature?
How Long Does It Take Orchids to Mature?. Orchids add an exotic touch to a home or garden. Some bloom on leggy green stems, while others burst with color on gently arching stems. You'll know your orchid has reached maturity when it finally produces these colorful blooms, but it may take a few years if you're propagating orchids from seeds....
Orchids add an exotic touch to a home or garden. Some bloom on leggy green stems, while others burst with color on gently arching stems. You'll know your orchid has reached maturity when it finally produces these colorful blooms, but it may take a few years if you're propagating orchids from seeds. Understanding your orchid's growth process can help you set up an appropriate environment to encourage its development, both before and after it reaches maturity.
Initial Growth
When grown from seeds, orchids take several months to begin developing leaves, which are almost unnoticeable at first unless you inspect the soil with a magnifying glass. Their roots appear later. If you're propagating orchids from backbulbs -- meaning you remove old pseudobulbs from a mature orchid to create new plants -- the roots and fresh leaves typically appear in three to four months.
Orchid Maturity
Orchids reach maturity when they begin to flower, which typically occurs after five to seven years of growth from seed. However, this maturity can hit in as little as three years or as many as eight years, depending on the variety of orchid. When growing orchids from backbulbs, this maturity can hit earlier, as the foundations for growth already exist. For instance, Cymbidium backbulbs generally produce their first flowers two to three years after planting.
Pollination
Flowering means a plant is mature and can propagate naturally via pollination. In the case of orchids, this pollination process requires pollinators such as moths, bees, flies and birds to dig the pollen from pollen sacks and transfer it elsewhere. This makes orchids smart choices for gardeners with pollen allergies, as the pollen remains contained deep in the flowers.
Encouraging Healthy Growth
Though you can't necessarily speed up the maturing process, you can provide orchids with a healthy environment to encourage strong growth and blooms that return year after year. Each orchid variety has unique needs, but typically tropical orchids prefer bright, indirect sunlight, 40 to 60 percent humidity and weekly watering. When you notice leaves developing during the growing season, apply a diluted fertilizer every other time you water; this encourages growth and flowering. Once a month, flush the potting soil with water, sans fertilizer, to prevent salt build-up.
