In the native rainforest, orchids under the canopy of leaves have not learned to deal with blazing sunshine. Therefore, the exotics do not count as a houseplant among the sun worshipers. However, the queen of flowers does not want to live completely without the sun. Read how to do it right here.
Orchids do not tolerate too much direct sunlight
These light conditions are ideal for orchids
As a houseplant, orchids want a lot of light all year round. On the other hand, they do not want to come into contact with the stinging sun at midday. This is especially true during the summertime. Therefore, choose the location according to these criteria:
- Ideally on the windowsill on the west or east side of the house
- On the south window preferably in winter or from March to October with a shading at midday
- The north window is only suitable for shade-tolerant species such as Brassia or Miltonia
If the sun rarely shines in winter, the lack of light on orchids causes unsightly decay on the shoots. In the worst case, the flowers and leaves are thrown off. In this case, you can use daylight lamps to compensate for the lack of sunlight.
Sun protection is mandatory on the balcony
The fresh air fans among the orchids prefer to linger on the summery balcony. Miltonia, Cambria or Odontoglossum are in floral top form after the summer break. However, this only applies if they are protected from the blazing summer sun during the midday hours under an awning or an eaves.
Detect sunburn early - tips on the symptoms
Orchids react to excess sun in a similar way to humans: they suffer from severe sunburn. As a clear symptom, the leaves turn yellow in the early stages. As the damage progresses, light brown spots with a dark border develop. Now, at the latest, please move the plagued orchids to a semi-shady location.
tips
The sun is completely undesirable if you propagate your orchids by seed. In order for the seeds to actually germinate on the culture medium, the test tubes must not be exposed to the sun at any time.