Bob Cleveland of the Maine Orchid Society

The Harpswell Garden Club welcomed Bob Cleveland of the Maine Orchid Society to its November meeting to learn the tips to growing orchids from one of the State’s top experts.  Bob, a longtime member of the Maine Orchid Society, brought many of his beautiful plants — several in bloom — to show members it’s not that hard to grow orchids in Maine.  A few of his tips were to plant orchids in the correct potting medium (a mix of what looked like wood chips), NOT to over-water orchids (water infrequently), and to give them proper filtered light.  He also suggested that we place the orchids on flat trays filled with small rocks and just enough water to give the plant extra humidity.

Orchids can also have flowers as large as your hand

Orchids can have very tiny flowers