How to Grow an Orchid

Written & researched by Elena Marsh Gardening & Landscaping Editor

Updated March 2026

The short answer: to grow a healthy orchid indoors, give it bright indirect light (an east window is ideal), water about once a week in coarse bark, keep it warm (65 to 80 F), feed lightly during growth, and repot into fresh bark every year or two. Start with a phalaenopsis (moth orchid) — it is forgiving, blooms for months, and teaches you how orchids actually work before you try fussier types.

Orchids have an unfair reputation as difficult. The truth is they simply grow differently from soil plants: most are epiphytes that cling to trees in the wild, so their roots need air and their potting medium is bark, not dirt. Once that clicks, a moth orchid is no harder than any other houseplant. Our care guidance reflects grower consensus, not first-hand trials — see how we rank.

Choosing the right orchid

For a first orchid, buy a phalaenopsis. It thrives in ordinary home conditions, blooms for two to four months, and is the type in every grocery store. Save Cattleya, Dendrobium, Oncidium and cooler-growing types for once you have the basics down — they want more specific light, temperature or humidity. When buying, look for firm, silvery-green roots, medium-green leaves and a mix of open flowers and unopened buds, which extends the display you get to enjoy.

Light

Light is the factor most beginners get wrong. Phalaenopsis want bright, indirect light — plenty of brightness but no harsh direct sun on the leaves.

• East window: close to perfect — gentle morning sun, bright the rest of the day.
• South or west window: workable behind a sheer curtain to soften the intensity.
• North window: often too dim to trigger blooming.

Read the leaves: a healthy phalaenopsis leaf is a medium grassy green. Very dark green means too little light (common in non-blooming plants), while yellow or red-tinged leaves mean too much. If your home is short on light, a grow light makes reliable blooming far easier — see our grow light picks.

Watering an orchid

Water most orchids about once a week, less in winter, and always judge by the plant rather than the calendar. Silvery-gray roots mean thirsty; green roots mean wait. Soak or flush the bark thoroughly, drain completely, and never let the pot sit in water or let water pool in the crown where the leaves meet. Because watering is where most orchids are won or lost, we cover it in depth in how often to water an orchid — read that alongside this guide.

Temperature and humidity

Phalaenopsis are comfortable in the same range people are: 65 to 80 F during the day. The key detail is that they need a cooler night drop to rebloom — more on that below. They prefer moderate humidity of 40 to 60 percent, higher than a dry winter home provides. If your leaves develop brown tips or buds shrivel and drop, low humidity may be the cause; grouping plants or setting the pot on a pebble tray helps. Our humidifier vs pebble tray comparison weighs the options. Keep orchids away from cold drafts and heating vents, both of which stress them.

Feeding an orchid

Orchids in bark are not heavy feeders, but bark provides almost no nutrients, so light regular feeding matters. The common advice is "weakly, weekly" — a balanced or orchid-specific fertilizer at quarter to half strength, applied during active growth in spring and summer, then eased off in fall and winter. Flush the pot with plain water every month or so to wash out accumulated fertilizer salts, which otherwise build up in bark and burn the roots. Our orchid fertilizer picks cover suitable formulas.

Potting medium and repotting

This is where orchids differ most from other houseplants. They are grown in coarse orchid bark (or sometimes sphagnum moss), never potting soil, because their roots need air circulation. Repot every one to two years, ideally just after flowering, when:

• the bark has broken down into a fine, water-holding sludge, or
• roots are climbing out of the pot and over the rim.

Old, decomposed bark holding water like a sponge is one of the leading hidden causes of root rot in a plant that used to be healthy. Use fresh coarse bark in a pot with generous drainage, trim any mushy dead roots, and settle the plant at the same depth. Clear plastic pots inside a decorative cache pot let you monitor root color and moisture. Our general repotting guide covers technique, though bark handling is specific to orchids.

Getting it to rebloom

A phalaenopsis blooms for months, then rests — and getting it to rebloom is the payoff that hooks people. The trigger is a cooler night period: give the plant two to four weeks in fall with night temperatures around 55 to 65 F, roughly 10 degrees below daytime, and a new flower spike usually forms. Keep light, watering and feeding steady through this cool spell. Once a spike appears, return the plant to its normal warm spot so the buds can develop. If a plant refuses to rebloom, the two usual culprits are not enough light and no night-temperature drop. After flowers fade, you can trim the spent spike — how far, and why, is covered in how to prune an orchid.

Growing orchids beyond the phalaenopsis

Once you have kept a moth orchid happy, other types become approachable, each with a slightly different quirk:

The core skills transfer directly: read the roots for watering, provide bright indirect light, feed weakly and weekly, and repot into fresh medium every year or two. What changes between types is mostly the light level and whether the plant needs a seasonal cool or dry rest to trigger blooming. Start with what conditions your home actually offers — a dim apartment suits a slipper orchid, while a bright sunroom opens up Cattleyas and Vandas.

Troubleshooting

Grow a phalaenopsis well and the rest of the orchid world opens up. For propagation from keikis and back bulbs see how to propagate an orchid, and browse the full houseplants hub for related care.