How to Set Up a Plant Room at Home for Orchids

Growing orchids indoors has become popular.

Indoor orchid growing is desirable due to its beautiful blooming flowers that can add to any indoor motif. Most orchid species grow on the branches of tropical trees in mountain forests, where they have high humidity levels between 50 and 80 percent; bright indirect light between 500 to 4,000 footcandles; adequate air circulation; and moderate temperatures between 75 to 80 degrees F during the day and 60 to 75 degrees at night. Homes have problems providing these needs in a manner that is comfortable for humans. A solution is to create a plant room for orchids. Choose a space suitable for the size of your collection, and look up the growth requirements for the specific plants you own or want to acquire.

Things You'll Need

• Maximum-minimum thermometer
• Air conditioner
• Evaporative cooler (optional)
• Space heater
• Infrared lights (optional)
• Heating cables (optional)
• Fan (optional)
• Hygrometer
• Weather stripping (optional)
• Window caulking (optional)
• Humidifier
• Pebble tray (optional)
• Wide-mouth pans (optional)
• Water
• Recirculating fountain (optional)
• Fungicide (optional)
• Scrub brush (optional)
• Scrub pad (optional)
• Pruning shears
• Camera with built-in light meter
• Grow lights (optional)
• Letter-sized white paper

Instructions

Temperature Control

1. Purchase a maximum-minimum thermometer. Place it in the orchid room. Record the daily minimum and maximum temperatures for a week.

2. Install an air conditioner or an evaporative cooler if the maximum temperatures regularly exceed 85 degrees Fahrenheit in the room.

3. Provide a space heater, infrared lights or heating cables if minimum temperatures go below 60 degrees regularly.

4. Continue to track temperatures with the maximum-minimum thermometer once heating and/or cooling devices are in operation. Adjust times of heating and cooling to achieve necessary temperature regimes. Choose appliances with thermostatic controls to make temperature maintenance easier.

5. Put the thermometer in different areas of the room and record the temperatures. Put a fan in the room to circulate air and equalize temperatures if there are hot spots or areas cooler than desired.

Humidity

1. 

   Hygrometers measure relative humidity.

   Purchase a hygrometer, also called a humidity sensor. Put it in the room before placing plants in it and write down the humidity readings for a week.

2. Install weather stripping around doors and windows and to keep humidity within the room if necessary. Recaulk window panes if needed.

3. Purchase a humidifier if the humidity levels are below 50 percent. Keep taking hygrometer readings routinely throughout the time the room is used for growing orchids, since humidity changes with air temperature. Adjust humidifier settings as needed.

4. 

   An indoor water feature can raise room humidity.

   Install humidifying features like pebble trays, misting devices, open pans of water or recirculating fountains to raise humidity in specific areas of the room where you want to grow plants that need humidity greater than the humidifier setting provides.

5. Inspect the room weekly for growth of mold on walls, ceilings, floors, shelves, and plants. Use fungicides and/or physical methods like scrubbing with brushes or scrub pads to remove mold on walls and fixtures. Remove fungus-infected leaves from orchids with pruning shears.

Light

1. 

   Room light intensity can be measured with a camera.

   Measure the light in different areas of the room by using a camera with a built-in light meter. Focus on a piece of matte white paper where you want the light measured. Record the f-stop readings.

2. Match up the f-stop readings with orchid growing requirements to see where your orchids would grow best.

3. Install full-spectrum grow lights if there is no light available in the room or if light needs to be supplemented according to the f-stop readings.

4. Measure light conditions throughout the year as natural lighting changes with the season. Adjust orchid positions or provide shade or the addition of artificial light as needed.

Tips & Warnings

• Orchids fall into three categories for temperature growing requirements: warm, intermediate and cool conditions. Heating and cooling requirements can be minimized by choosing orchids that more closely match the growing conditions already present.

• F-stop readings reflect how much the camera lens is open. The higher the f-stop, the more light there is in the environment. F-stop readings and their corresponding footcandle (fc) approximations are: f/2.8 (200 fc); f/4 (370 fc); f/5.6 (750 fc); f/8 (1,500 fc); f/11 (2,800 fc); f/16 (5,000 fc).

• Choose orchids to conform to light conditions present. There are three categories of orchids based on light requirements: high (3,000+ footcandles); medium (2,000 to 3,000 footcandles); and low (1,200 to 2,000 footcandles).

• Growth of mold on walls, floors and ceilings of the room can spread to other areas of the house, weakening structural elements and compromising family members with mold allergies. Install vents to allow extra humidity to escape if humidity becomes too high.

References

• The Gardener's Guide to Growing Orchids; Charles Marden Fitch
• Ortho's All About Orchids; Elvin McDonald
• Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation: Measuring Humidity in Your Home
• Taylor's Guide to Orchids; Judy White

Resources

• Beginner's Guide to Orchids; Geoffrey Hands
• Orchids for Dummies; Steven A. Frowine