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How Big Do Orchids Get? (Find Out Here)

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How big do orchids get? Orchids can get big in a wide array of sizes depending on the species. We are going to discuss about size of the most popular orchids in this article. You can use this article to get an idea on sizes of different orchid verities and it will help you to chose the best orchid for your indoor or out door garden.

How Big Do Orchids Get

How big do orchids get?

Their heights would vary from 8-36 inches. On the other hand, they can reach a maximum width of 12 inches. If you are an orchid lover and wondering how varied their sizes could be , I suggest you to go through this article as I will be briefly explaining how big these orchids can get after taking several orchid species into consideration.

How big do phalaenopsis orchids get?

Phalaenopsis orchids would usually grow to a height of 8-36 inches. Further they can spread up to 8 inches to 1 foot in width. However, to experience that, you need to provide the optimal growing conditions for them and keep them healthy. They are also known as moth orchids as they mimic a look of moth wings. To briefly explain on these plants, these are endemic to some parts of Asia and to Australia.

These are some commonly used orchid species which many people tend to use for beautifying indoor gardening. In fact, Phalaenopsis orchids is the most famous orchid cultivator among many orchid growing enthusiasts. Further they would be a great pick for the beginners as well. Besides, the right growing conditions would make them stay in bloom for several months.

Phalaenopsis orchids consist of thick leaves and those leaves feature  in many designs and that feature makes the look even more graceful.

How big do mini orchids get?

Mini orchids would reach a maximum height of 6-10 inches when they grow to their best potential. When you purchase them, they would be more like in their adult version. Further chances are that they could develop more leaves after you purchase them. Furthermore, they could grow one or two inches in height after you cultivate them too.  

Mini orchids belong to the orchid species which produce smaller flowers. Further there are only a few species which you could categorize as mini plants. These mini orchids would not grow to become full sized plants like the rest. One might think these are baby orchids, but it is a whole new species of orchids and that is how they have naturally constructed. 

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You could spot them growing  in some parts of the world naturally. Platystele Jungermannioides is a prime example which falls under mini orchids. These flowers are so gentle, slender, and small which you could even see through them.

How big do jewel orchids get?

Jewel orchids would rise to a maximum height of 12 inches when they grow to their full potential. They would be in  equal size in the spread also. These are some tropical plants which usually come up with a unique leaf pattern and you could commonly spot them grown naturally in forest floors in Southeast Asia. 

Jewel orchids grow at a rapid phase during spring and summer. Literally the good light levels make them grow faster. Once the light conditions get decreased, they would tend to grow at a slow phase. Jewel orchids tend to spread rather than growing taller. Thus, sometimes you could spot them growing wider than their height.  

How big do vanda orchids get?

You could spot Vanda orchids forming in many sizes. Vanda orchids are a tiny set of plants. In fact, they can even fit into the palms of your hand, and they could grow up to a maximum height of 6 feet. On the other hand, Vanda orchid blooms could vary in sizes. Actually, their sizes could vary from one inch to four inches. 

Vanda orchids tend to grow in clusters and one stem would carry about 15 flowers. You could differentiate the Vanda orchids among the other orchids as these plants have long rambling roots. That feature makes them stay enclosed in the trees. There are three main types of Vanda orchids, and they are Terete, Strap and Semi terete.

How big do miniature orchids get?

Miniature orchids would tend to stay in their initial height as they grow further. Literally they would be in their adult size when you purchase them. Don’t get misled that they are in the initial growing state. In fact, they could only grow for another two more inches when you purchase them. Furthermore, Minatare orchids can reach a maximum height of  16-25 cm at maturity.

Many people are fans of the miniature orchids due to their attractive sizes. In fact, it would be somewhat challenging to look after these plants as they  cannot withstand any lapses in the care treatment they get. On the other hand, larger orchid species can tolerate the lapses of the care treatments to some extent.

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How big do oncidium orchids get?

Oncidium orchids would reach a maximum height of ten feet when they grow to their best. Having said that many hybrid versions of oncidium would only be one or two feet in height too. They would form in a wide array of inflorescence. On the other hand, their leaves can grow up to two feet in length too. These are yet another famous orchid species which are quite popular  among the orchid enthusiasts as well as among the florists. 

These plants would perform well in regular growing conditions. Further they would develop a mass of white roots as well. You could spot them flowering in fall.

How Big Do Orchids Get

How to make orchid flowers bigger?

First you could delay transplanting until they finish flowering. One might think, it would be better to transplant your orchids to a fresh soil mix at the time you purchased them. However, I don’t recommend doing that as it may cause the plants to drop the flowers well in advance. particularly when they are in the premature stage. Ideally you need to conduct repotting only when they drop their last bloom. 

The reason behind that is because only then they would start to grow actively. Further during this period, they would start to prepare their leaves, roots for the next blooming session too. When repotting ensure that you remove the dead roots while using a scalpel. However, before you use the scalpel make sure that you sterilize it. Next choose a pot which has ample draining. The selected pot should be slightly larger than the plant.  ideally it should be no bigger than one inch from the plant’s size. 

Next use a specialized potting medium and plant them. Do not grow them in regular soil as those conditions would not be optimal conditions for the plants. Next you could trim the dead spikes to make their blooms grow bigger. Once you snip off their dead spikes, it would allow them to regenerate when they are dormant. 

Once you remove them, it would further help them to recover from stress as well. Not only that but also, it would help them to conserve energy and develop much bigger flowers. Once you cut these off, it would encourage bigger blooms. Finally, when you reduce the ambient temperature slightly during night, it would also make them emerge with bigger blooms. 

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To do this, you could simply move them to a spot where there will be a drop in nighttime temperature. Ideally your preferred spot should be windowsill.

Do orchids stop growing?

Orchids can stop growing due to several reasons. If your orchid was growing all well and if you witness a sudden stop in the growth, it literally means something is wrong with the plants. For example, if you change the fertilizers it could result in the stop of the growth. It would be more like a sudden change of the diet for them, and they would respond to it by halting the growth. In addition to that if the orchids are running short of conserved energy that would also force them to stop growing any further. 

Moreover, if your orchids are running short of sufficient Nitrogen and Phosphorus  levels, that would also contribute to the halt in growth. So, if you use the wrong fertilizers even though you feed the orchids in the right way , it is very unlikely that you can gain the benefits of fertilizing.

Underwatering is one more reason as to why your orchids may halt their growth. So, literally if you had watered the plants well and all of a sudden stopped, it would badly affect the plants and stop growing them.  

Further, if you expose them to a drastic change in the growing environment it would also traumatize them and result in halt in growing. When I say changes in the growing conditions, if you expose them for sunlight for prolonged periods and if you end up using a  decomposed potting medium , those factors will contribute  for the halt in growing of the orchids.

How to care for large orchids?

To briefly explain on the basic care treatments that orchids need, they would prefer to have a potting medium which has excellent drainage. Further it is important that they have at least six hours of indirect sunlight on a daily basis. Next , they need to have moistened soil and not waterlogged and soggy soil. In addition to that I recommend feeding the plants once a month which is diluted to a quarter strength. Last but not least you need to grow them in a humid area and prune them when it is required.

Credit to : Evelyn Perfect

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I'm Dr. Chamika and I'm a Researcher in Water quality, Aquatic organisms, and Environmental chemistry. Our highly qualified team is trying to educate you in various aspects of the day to day life in many ways. Their mission is to help others to enjoy their life to the fullest.