Jan 2012 The definition of white orchids describes them as an enormous family of perennial terrestrial or epiphytic plants, with fleshy tubers or rootstocks and unusual flowers. This hardly describes the attraction of white orchids but does suggest something of the unusual nature of these flowers. There’s something exotic about white orchids and can be seen in abundance in Bangkok happily decorating the outside entrances to hotels and public buildings, but in our cooler climate we need to grow them in our homes or in a greenhouse and so enjoy them all year round.
Terrestrial white orchids grow from a pot in a growing medium, whereas epiphytic white orchids grow off other plants, for example living off the leaf litter on bark. Although there’s a widespread idea that white orchids are hard to grow, like other members of the orchid family, in fact wild orchids grow in almost all habitats apart from deserts and glaciers.
To find white orchids growing in the wild you should look in the tropics, including Asia, South and Central America. More surprisingly you can find white orchids above the Arctic Circle in southern Patagonia and on Macquarie Island. How lovely it would be to see white orchids so close to Antarctica.
Most white orchids are perennial epiphytes, which means, that they grow anchored to trees or shrubs. Some other white orchids are lithophytes growing on rocks or in especially rocky soil. Temperate white orchids would be terrestrial and are easy to grow in our homes. Some white orchids do not have leaves and can’t photosynthesise. Instead these white orchids, such as Neottia and Corallorhiza, live off soil fungi in a parasitic way.
The leaves of white orchids can also be beautiful and decorative on their own. White orchids often have leaves that are considered ornamental, and as they are perennial they look lovely even when the plant isn’t flowering. White orchids called Jewel Orchids are grown for their colourful leaves rather than the flowers, which are not particularly noticeable.
The leaves of white orchids grown in the home are perennial, and last for a few years. For this reason white orchids are a lovely part of your décor with or without the flowers. There’s no need to worry about your white orchids pollinating, as the type you grow in your home produce offshoots or plantlets formed from one of the nodes on the stem.
Some white orchids can be grown from seeds and some varieties are more difficult to look after. Because these plants are so exquisite, they can tempt gardeners to specialise in the cultivation of orchids alone. Orchid experts grow a wide variety of plants, but somehow white orchids remain particularly popular and there’s always a market for them both for the home and for special occasions including weddings and celebratory gifts.