In botany, orchids are part of the immense family of monocotyledonous plants which numbers more than 25,000 species. Certainly the most appreciated and highly appreciated indoors, the “Phalaenopsis” orchid, more commonly known as the “butterfly orchid”, is very easy to grow at home. With simple maintenance and without too many constraints, it can be kept for a long time and prolong its flowering. It blooms fully in an environment around 20°C (never below 10°C) and tolerates summer heat well. Light as butterflies, its flowers are very beautiful to look at, oscillating between various colors ranging from white, pink, yellow and orange. Some hybrid orchids can even borrow perennial hues such as purple, violet or electric blue.

This tropical plant is resistant and its cultivation is ideally done during the winter period. In the bulb or rhizome state it adapts easily to cool temperatures. After the cold months, the orchid prepares for its vegetative awakening. But how to take care of it to give it everything it needs and stimulate its spring flowering?

In this article we reveal the best natural fertilizers to make your orchids bloom (or rebloom) faster at home according to the advice of Romain Le Tallec, a florist from Lyon.

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Banana peel to make your orchids bloom

To increase the flowering of your orchid, there’s nothing like adding a little fertilizer to its substrate. The most popular natural fertilizer for this type of plant is banana peel. This is precisely the nutrient it needs: rich in vitamins B6 and C, mineral salts such as potassium and magnesium, banana peel is the little push it needs to grow and flourish peacefully.

Take a banana peel, wash it and cut it into small pieces. Then place them in a bowl with 2 liters of water and soak them for about 48 hours. Finally filter the mixture.

The liquid obtained will absorb all the nutrients from the banana peel, so you can use it as water to water your orchids.

egg shells

Widely used to chase away all the undesirables that revolve around plants, eggshell is also a natural fertilizer rich in calcium and potassium. By crushing the shells very finely and sprinkling them on the bark of your orchids, the soil will quickly absorb all these nutrients and minerals essential for flowering.

Ash

Do you like creating a cozy atmosphere in winter around the fireplace? So little tip, don’t get rid of the ashes! You may not know it, but you can recycle them into fertilizer for your orchids. It may seem strange to you, but fireplace ashes are very rich in calcium, potassium, phosphorus and trace elements. In other words, a cocktail of nutrients that your plants need!

The ideal is to add these ashes directly to your orchid’s soil. Do this after watering. The ash tree favors flowering and also takes advantage of this to asphyxiate insects that revolve around the plants. However, they lack  nitrogen and phosphorus, which you will need to supplement with other fertilizers. Caution: Since ash is a bit caustic, it’s best to wear gloves when handling it.

banana tea

Another clever method with this same ingredient: take a banana peel and cut it into small pieces. Then place them on a cutting board and expose them to direct sunlight for about 48 hours. You will notice that your skin dries out and becomes harder. Then put the peels in a blender and you will obtain a powdered mixture.

Use a teaspoon of this product, pouring it into approximately 200 ml of hot water. Mixed. Then let it cool. You’ve just made some banana tea: let it cool and then pour it into your orchid.

banana powder

This method is also very convenient. In this case, after drying the banana peels in the sun, you must place them in the oven at 70°C until they are completely dry. Then remove them from the oven and grind them into powder. You can then use this banana powder as fertilizer to help your orchid grow better.

Don’t throw away banana peels, as you can see, they are much more useful on your plants than in the garbage!

cooking water

Another unexpected alternative to fertilizer: vegetable cooking water. You definitely make this for every meal! So stop throwing that water down the drain and save it for watering your orchids instead. Because, you need to know that during cooking, these foods release a lot of nutrients into the water. And it turns out it’s a great natural fertilizer for your plants!

NB: you should not use salt water, at the risk of killing your orchids!

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When to use these natural fertilizers?

These natural fertilizers must be used with great care. If you use them too often, you risk damaging your orchid. During the winter months, fertilize at most once a month. Begin fertilizing more frequently as new shoots begin to develop.

Why doesn’t the moth orchid bloom indoors?

If you notice that your orchids develop leaves well, but do not produce flowers, it means that the conditions are not optimal for its flowering. It’s typically a light issue: your plants need light, but not direct sunlight. As for temperature, avoid drafts and install them in a warm but humid place. Lack of humidity can prevent flowering.