Hot and Steamy: What You Need to Know about the Ups and Downs of Orchid Temperature

Photo Courtesy of Allen Black's Photo Site

Temperature can be one of the trickier points of keeping orchids. Usually it is better to choose plants that conform closely to the temperature conditions you already have. If you choose plants for looks, or interest and ignore temperature, you will most likely end up with orchids whose temperature needs directly conflict.

Most orchids require intermediate temperatures. This means daytime high temperatures in the low seventies to eighties and nighttime low temperatures between sixty and sixty-five degrees. Luckily, this is also the temperature range that most closely resembles household temperatures. Cattleyas, most Oncidiums, Ascocendas, most Paphiopedilums, Brassias, Miniature Cymbidiums and most Encyclias fall within the intermediate range, along with a number of other specific species and hybrids. The most commonly grown orchids in the cool range are large Cymbidiums, Odontoglossums and Zygopetlums (which can also be grown in cooler intermediate ranges). Cool growing orchids grow well with a nighttime low temperature of approximately fifty-five degrees and a daytime high of about sixty-five to seventy degrees. Warm growing orchids include Phalaenopsis and Vanda orchids. They like daytime temperatures of close to seventy-five to eighty degrees and nighttime low temperatures between sixty-five and seventy degrees.

Seedlings like to be kept warmer than full grown plants and should not be allowed to get as cold at night.

General Orchid Temperature Guidelines:

Cool Growing Orchids: High 65-70F Low 55-60F Zygopetalum, Cymbidium, Zygoneria, Ondontoglossum

Intermediate Growing Orchids: High 70-80F Low 60-65F Cattleya, Oncidium, Brassia, Encylcia, Cymbidium (miniature)

Warm Growing Orchids: High 75-85F Low 65-70F Phalaenopsis, Vanda, Cochleanthes Amazonica

For more information about temperature requirements for getting different types of orchids to flower, check out my post Getting the Right Temperature Change for Orchids to Bloom.

About Me and This Blog, The Armchair Orchidist

I love orchids. I have been growing orchids now for a while and I just think they’re amazing plants. I first became interested in orchids when I was a kid. I tried growing a couple, but never had much success.

I used to think I couldn’t grow them in my home, but I have discovered that with a little work and patience it’s really not that hard. These are incredible plants. Orchidae is the most diverse and complex plant family on earth, with so many different species and varieties it’s astounding. People have also played a major role in orchid ecology, both as a destructive force and a constructive one through creating manifold new hybrids and growing orchids just about everywhere people live.

This blog is intended to share some of the expertise and passion I’ve gained in growing orchids over the past year. It is really intended as an informational site for beginning and intermediate orchid growers, who grow orchids in the home. As I have gained more knowledge about the basics of orchid growing I have found myself wishing that some of this information was more accessible. Most of all, I simply want to share my excitement with others who are just getting started with these amazing and complex plants.