Orchid care can be pretty basic once an orchid parent has a better understanding of the plant, says Bas van Eijk, co-owner of Cal Coast Orchids. Watering an orchid presents the first hurdle, as people tend to “over-baby” the plant with too much moisture. The secret lies in reading the roots, van Eijk says. Cal Coast Orchids chooses to plant its orchids in translucent pots to help buyers clearly see the roots and more easily identify when the flower needs water. Once all the roots of the orchid plant appear a silvery- gray, the orchid needs water. But if the roots are still green? They’re still full of water, van Eijk says. “If you can’t tell? Wait another day,” he says. Orchids grow as a hardy plant, capable of reblooming if there’s enough patience, van Eijk says. “It can take 20 to 30 weeks in a household to get a flower spike to rebloom,” he says. “It’s definitely a patience game.” First trim the orchid spike, or the stem with flowers on it, to the second node (the bump on the stem). The correct trim provides two opportunities for reblooming: one potential flower that grows from the established stem and a slow-growing rebloom that begins from the base of the orchid. If you’re having trouble reblooming the orchid, the problem is usually a doting plant parent. Try neglecting the plant to encourage more flowers, van Eijk says. “When a plant starts to die, it will shoot out flowers (to encourage reproduction),” he says. Stress the plant by taking it out of its happy place to a location with a lower temperature, light level and humidity, like a dark corner or a bathroom. In five to seven weeks, new spikes will start to form and the orchid can be moved back to its preferred space. secret to orchid care Sometimes neglect is the
“In nature, orchids grow out of bark, not sitting in a compacted moss bale,” she explains. “(With bark), the plant has a longer shelf life and better chance of reblooming because it’s being taken care of correctly and has a healthy root structure.” While Glasco and van Eijk looked to the orchid’s natural habitat to influence the potting medium, the environment chosen for the greenhouse itself is anything but wild. Van Eijk manages a sophisticated array of technologies he calls the “cockpit of the greenhouse” to provide the ideal, eco-friendly surroundings for their orchids to thrive. Cal Coast Orchids uses technology to set up tools like smart irrigation and sensitive climate controls to improve efficiency and reduce waste. A high-pressure misting system establishes an ideal humidity level without using sprinklers and fans. Automated, energy-saving curtains reduce the greenhouse’s energy usage by 70%, according to Cal Coast Orchids’ website. Van Eijk spends a couple of hours every day checking the different graphs produced by his sustainability systems. “Climate is extremely important for orchids,” he says. “But from day one, we wanted to make sure we conserve nature.” Continuing to expand After six months of setting up systems and tending to orchids in the Los Osos greenhouse, van Eijk and Glasco readied for their first year of sales. As 75% of their orchids sell during the spring, the couple prepared for a successful season in spring 2020. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit. “We were ready to go and all of our customers came to us and said, ‘We are canceling orders,’” Glasco remembers. But the duo’s belief in their product, and the joy orchids bring, kept them focused on their ambitious plans as the pandemic spread.
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