Silly question - Does it matter which way an orchid is oriented?

[JeffreyR]

Re phals growing on a table near a window...

Up to now I have them facing all different ways. Some are parallel to the window, with the leaves spread out an equal distance and all getting more or less the same light. Some are perpendicular, with some leaves getting more light than others. And some are in between. I generally try to maintain the same orientation for a given plant unless I am trying to fix a tilt or to direct a spike growth. The direction they face is often dictated by table space and aesthetics.

I’ve recently repotted many into S/H.

I was wondering
1) if there is a preferred way to orient a plant relative to a window - parallel or perpendicular - or it doesn’t matter
2) if you stick to an orientation or try to rotate and mix it up for a given plant.

I do know to keep the plant direction fixed once buds start to form.
And I do know to watch out for too much or too direct light.
And I’m not asking about south vs east.

Thanks as always,

[SouthPark]

I don't think it matters, unless you want it to matter. The main thing is ----- if we think about what happens in nature, nobody is going to be orienting a plant around in nature - in general.

The plant growth tends to grow toward the light source. If the conditions are such at the plant does this, then just do what you are doing - and purposely compensate - by manually manipulating the plant's orientation.

If light is coming through a window, and the plant is growing in a particular way, then maybe mirrors could redirect some light on one side of the plant.

Or for flower spikes, a skewer and/or plant ties, or gentle spike clips might be able to hold a spike in some desired position.

[Bulbopedilum]

If you just want them to stay upright for aesthetic / looks, you can flip the plant whenever it starts leaning to one side.

[Ray]

For growth of the plants,I doubt it matters. However, when a spike starts developing, do not rotate the plant.

When blooming, plants have a natural way of aligning the flowers to maximize the chance of pollination. In phals, that tends to be somewhat unidirectional, making it pleasant to look at, but if you rotate the plant, they'll be all screwy and face in every direction.

I must disagree with SouthPark's recommendation of a mirror to reflect light back to the plants. As the light rays are entering a window at a downward angle, if they hit a mirror oriented vertically, the light will be reflected downward to the floor. If that reflector is bright, matte white however, the light is absorbed and reradiated in all directions, so more will reach the plants.

[SouthPark]

The idea is a sunlight reflective surface of some sort. Also, about the mirror ---- depending on window dimension, and depending on the angle of the sun - mirrors set at a appropriate height, or mirror of appropriate size will be workable. Some other reflective surface will be workable too, or even better. The idea is the reflective surface.

The possible compromise with reflective surfaces could be blocking light that would normally illuminate the rest of the room.

Also - for plants growing indoors, next to a window where sun shines in --- definitely make sure to factor-in the max intensity, and also factor-in how much air-circulation there is for the plant. Open window with nice amount of air coming in all the time would be nice.

[Ray]

Originally Posted by SouthPark

The idea is a sunlight reflective surface of some sort. Also, about the mirror ---- depending on window dimension, and depending on the angle of the sun - mirrors set at a appropriate height, or mirror of appropriate size will be workable. Some other reflective surface will be workable too, or even better. The idea is the reflective surface.

Agreed!

[Roberta]

A trick that photographers use to reflect light gently into shadows or to produce backlight is to crumple up a piece of aluminum foil, then flatten it out and attach it to a piece of foam-core board or similar surface. The reflection of light in the desired direction is diffused by the "messy" surface of the foil.

[Mountaineer370]

Please be very careful about using a mirror in your house to reflect sunlight coming in a window! This actually happened to my cousin. Unbeknownst to her, sunlight coming in her bathroom window would hit her makeup mirror at certain times of the day, and that light was reflected back toward a wooden window frame. She didn't notice it right away, but eventually noticed a burned spot on the wood. The only thing that saved the wood from actually catching fire was that the movement of the earth meant the sunlight was only hitting that wood for a limited period of time in the day. It was a long enough period to char the wood but not actually catch it on fire.

Not only would I not want to see anyone burn any materials inside their home, but it seems it certainly could be possible to burn your plants, too.

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by Mountaineer370

sunlight coming in her bathroom window would hit her makeup mirror at certain times of the day,

Nasty! And good information for some heads-up. Always good. I wonder if that mirror was a concave type ...... with some kind of focal point. Charring wood is nasty.