Stores upping the orchid challenge

For quite a while now, orchid aficionados have told the rest of us told that orchids can be easy to grow.

The sophisticated flowers are not just in the greenhouses of the green-thumbed but can sit in anyone’s window, usually if the orchids are of the phalaenopsis type. Those are the ones mass merchandisers usually carry.

But the stores are also kicking it up a notch, said Susie Sutton of the Kansas Orchid Society. The society will have its fall show and sale next weekend at Botanica. Arrangements of orchids will be among those on display — as will a black orchid — and vendors will have all kinds for sale, along with growing supplies. The best part is that the society’s members are right there to answer your questions and help you select the orchids that are best for your situation.

“As for the easy orchids, everyone is familiar with phalaenopsis, and they have become very popular and readily available in so many retail avenues —grocery stores, discount stores and home improvement stores in addition to florists and garden centers,” Sutton said.

“Now we’re seeing cymbidiums and oncidiums at some of the stores as well cattleyas at Lowe’s,” Sutton said. The first two types, substantial cymbidiums and often-ruffly oncidiums, “are fairly easy to grow as well. You could grow those in a window in your home. They have no specific lighting requirements. You don’t have to make sure the area is a certain temperature.”

One type of orchid requires 65 to 75 degrees, she said.

But cattleyas, whose flowers often are used in wedding bouquets and corsages, require light that is brighter than that of a window, Sutton said. She’s seen them languish on the dim shelves of Lowe’s.

Some stores label the orchids so you know what kind you’re getting; others leave it vague. You can check websites such as that of the American Orchid Society — www.aos.org. And if you have a question, you can take it to the orchid show for an answer.

New this year will be exhibits of orchid arrangements. Members of the public can enter the show; entries will be accepted Oct. 31 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. You can find more details about the categories and how to show orchids on the local society’s website, www.kansasorchidsociety.com.

The show will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 1 and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 2 at Botanica. Admission to the show and sale is free. Johnson’s Garden Centers will be joining Timbucktoo and Prairie Orchids as vendors at the event.

Karlene Sanborn of the society will give a lunchtime lecture at 12:15 p.m. Wednesday at Botanica on how to grow orchids. It’s included in Botanica admission.

You can also attend the meetings of the orchid society. They generally are at 2 p.m. the third Sunday of the month at Botanica, but check the website first to make sure.

This story was originally published October 24, 2014 at 12:57 PM with the headline "Stores upping the orchid challenge."