How to propagate an orchid at home

Potted orchids breed only in a vegetative way. Flower seeds growing in pots are small and without a protective shell. Planting material sprouts in sterile laboratory conditions, and when released into normal soil dies. Orchids are propagated by cutting and rooting aerial children, as well as by dividing an adult bush. How successful an attempt will be depends on the age of the plant and the experience of the gardener.

When to multiply

They are cutting and dividing in early spring, when the orchid awakens and begins to actively increase the green mass. The flower intensively absorbs the nutrients from the soil, so transplanting to a new pot will not be stressful for the plant, and cuts will be dragged out in 2–4 days.

Adult orchids, which are from 3-4 years old, propagate.Shoots and cuttings are cut in healthy specimens, otherwise the mother bush and the green harvest will disappear.

When working with exotic flowers, wear gloves and sanitize all the tools so as not to infect the plant. Use well sharpened scissors. Wash the blade with a strong solution of potassium permanganate, wipe with alcohol or an antiseptic. Keep on hand charcoal, which sprinkle with slices. The powder protects the open "wound" from bacteria and insects.

Side shoots

Phalaenopsis orchids do not tolerate division. It is safer to propagate this type of side shoots, which are called air children. Preparation of orchids for reproduction occurs in two stages. Suitable flower age 1-1,5 years. When he discards the last petals, the upper part should be cut off, leaving only the lower half with a sleeping kidney.

The first stage begins in February or March:

1. Watering orchids is reduced to 1 time in 10 days.
2. A pot with an exotic flower is transferred to a darkened room, where the night temperature varies between + 16–18, and during the day rises from +22 to +24.
3. The plant is taken out daily in the sun and left for 50–60 minutes, but not longer.

Poor watering and high temperatures awaken a kidney. When she wakes up, the second stage begins:

1. The orchid is moved to a warm room, where the temperature is kept within + 20-25 degrees. Below it is impossible, otherwise the formation of lateral shoots will stop.
2. Protect an exotic bush from direct sunlight. Hang curtains or blinds on the windows, keep the pot in the shade.
3. The flower is watered from 2 to 4–5 times a week. The lack of moisture slows down the development of children, and an overabundance leads to the appearance of fungus.
4. Defend the water for 2–3 days and be sure to warm up to + 30–34 degrees before watering.
5. Feed regularly with fertilizers that contain a lot of nitrogen.
6. Spray the top and leaves of the spray 2-3 times a day. In the water add special complexes for feeding orchids.

On the flower, which turned out to be in an improvised tropics, side shoots will appear, which will eventually form their own roots and leaves. Mini-bushes are located on the peduncle at the place of buds. Young bushes are actively developing at a temperature of +25 degrees and high humidity.

Children are cut from the mother stem when the length of the roots will be 4–5 cm.Young orchids are transplanted into transparent pots. The tank is half filled with pine bark with a diameter of 5 mm to 1 cm. It plays the role of a drainage layer and retains moisture so that the root system of the plant does not dry out.

Pour the substrate over the pine bark. Land taken from the pot, in which the maternal orchid grows. Plant young shoots in the ground, water and fertilize occasionally. Ensure that the temperature in the room does not fall below + 25-26 degrees. In the first year of life, it is advisable to keep new orchids in a mini-greenhouse with an eight-percent moisture level.

Tip: Sometimes on air kiddies form their own flower stalks. Side shoots with open buds do not cut, but wait until they wither, and only then they separate the young orchid from the mother stem.

Reproduction by cutting

Monopodial species, which include Wanda, Epidendrum and Dendrobium, propagated by cuttings. The procedure is carried out in the spring so that the plant has time to adapt and gain strength for rooting:

1. Use a sharp knife to separate the tip of the lateral shoot or the old elongated stem.At least 2 live aerial roots should remain on the handle.
2. Dust the slices with coal, then treat with fungicides to prevent diseases and cover them with garden pitch, which will speed healing.
3. Immediately put the cutting in a separate pot and put it in a greenhouse.

Long faded stems can be cut into several pieces, leaving 2 axillary buds on each. Lay out the blanks on moistened sand or sphagnum moss, without deepening into the substrate. Cover future orchids with glass. Get an improvised greenhouse with a high level of humidity. Keep the box warm. The length of the cuttings varies from 10 to 15 cm.

When the first white roots appear on the blanks, each seedling is placed in a separate plastic cup filled with water. If you leave the cuttings in the same container, they will intertwine with each other. Fragile shoots are difficult to divide without breaking, so most of the seedlings will be spoiled.

The water in the plastic cups is changed in 1-2 days so that it does not stagnate. In a new batch of liquid add a drop of fertilizer for orchids. Slowly developing shoots are treated with hormone paste or solution designed specifically for exotic flowers.

How to apply a stimulating drug? Cut a leaf located next to the kidney, and then smear the remaining stump with a small amount of paste. Repeat the procedure with hormones in 5-10 days.

Plastic cups with cuttings must be covered with plastic bags to create a greenhouse effect. When the roots of the blanks grow by 4–5 cm, the young orchid is planted in a pot of soil and looked after, like an adult flower. The only difference between seedlings from the mother bush is that they do not tolerate direct sunlight and develop more actively in the shade.

Adult plant division

Reproduction by division is carried out carefully, choosing only the strongest and healthiest flowers. This method is suitable only for sympodial species:

• Miltonia;
• Oncidium;
• Cymbidium;
• Odontoglossum;
• Dendrobium;
• Cattlee.

Only an adult flower with at least four false bulbs will do. With a smaller amount of the plant does not have time to develop the root system, it becomes weak and dies. Orchid is divided into 2, maximum 3 parts. The division is recommended when the pot becomes too close for the root system of an adult shrub, and you need to transplant the plant into a new pot of larger size.There is nothing difficult in such reproduction:

1. Substrate, which is an orchid, pour warm water to soften the soil.
2. Tap the walls of the pot with a spatula or palm. So it is easier to separate the lump of earth from the pot.
3. To clasp the main stem of the plant and pull, only gently, otherwise the plant will break.
4. Clean the root system from adhering soil, pieces of leaves and dried roots.
5. Use a sharp disinfected knife to divide the main onion into 2–3 parts, leaving at least 4 pseudobulbs on each.
6. Process the cuts with activated charcoal or charcoal. Dry billet, and after planting in separate pots filled with moss and nutrient substrate.

On the maternal bulb must leave a few young pseudobulb. They contain nutrients that help adult shrubs survive the division. Otherwise, the growth of the orchid slows down, and the plant does not throw out the buds or forms too few inflorescences.

One part turned out weaker than the second? It will take an ordinary bag, which is filled with sphagnum with wet moss, and then a seedling is put into it.The edges are tightly tied to keep the moisture inside and the orchid is placed in a warm place. Water and high temperatures stimulate the growth of new roots. The strengthened seedling is transferred to a pot filled with a substrate for adult flowers.

Tip: A year before breeding, by dividing into an orchid, neat cuts are made, which will increase the number of pseudobulbs, and the root system will become thicker. The method makes the mother's orchid stronger and helps to adapt after moving to a new pot.

Exotic plant from peduncle

Saplings of monopodial type are grown from a peduncle. Reproduction will begin in the fall, when the buds wither and fall off. The peduncle is not cut, but left in a pot so that it constantly receives nutrients.

On the largest and strongest kidney, make several small cuts and remove the surface shell resembling scales. Apply a cytokinin paste to the cleaned area, and a small portion of the preparation the size of millet grain will suffice.

Keep the orchid in the greenhouse. The bud will turn into a sapling only in conditions of high humidity. The temperature in the room should not fall below +25.First, a thin sprout will appear, which will get stronger and acquire aerial roots and full-fledged leaves. The formed outlet is separated from the peduncle and planted in a separate pot. A young orchid will throw out the first buds in 1-2 years.

Reproduction by layering

On the stem of some sympodial species are dormant buds. They are in knots and under certain conditions can turn into sockets. How to get seedlings without harming the orchid?

In a plastic container with low sides put a layer of sphagnum or expanded clay. Moss is preferable, because it retains more moisture and heat. The main stem, cleared of leaves, gently tilted to the ground, not separated from the parent bush. A blank with sleeping buds is attached to the tray and covered with a plastic container. In the tank to make a special slot for the stem.

Orchid provide good coverage, otherwise the awakening of the kidneys slows down. Warm water is regularly poured into moss or expanded clay, but it is monitored to ensure that droplets of moisture do not fall on the main stem.

The first shoots will seem after 3-4 weeks.If there is nothing, mistakes were made in the care of the orchid.

Wait until the socket gets its own strong roots, and then transplant it into a separate pot. Be sure to water and apply some fertilizer to shorten the adaptation period.

Orchid reproduction is a difficult and time-consuming task. Only experienced gardeners manage to grow a new flower from a cutting or bud the first time. Seedlings are sick, disappear, do not take root, or die months after transplantation. But if you do not despair, experiment and try different methods, once on the windowsill an orchid grown at home from the mother bush will blossom.

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