By Madison Butkus
Hometown Weekly Reporter
With spring time right around the corner, the Westwood Council on Aging (COA) hosted Suzie Canale to talk with seniors all about Orchids this past Friday, February 16th. Topics of discussion for this event included planting, feeding, and maintaining tips as well as an introduction to a few beautiful varieties of orchids.
Westwood COA members gathered together, eager to get their hands dirty and learn all about orchid care. Set up at each seat was a ceramic pot, a bag of wood chips and soil, a beautiful orchid, a wooden stick, a print out of an orchid, some Valentine’s string, a print out of a heart, a glue stick, a pen, and a handout describing the common varieties of orchids.
Before digging in to start planting the orchid, Suzie gave some background information about these flowers as well as some fascinating facts. “Orchids are a massive family,” Suzie mentioned, “in which they are the second largest family of flowers. The first one is actually lilies. So you are talking about a lot of different varieties and species which is what makes them my favorite plants ever. Today, we are going to be dealing with Phalaenopsis orchids. They are very pretty and multicolored with pinks and creams and yellows and greens and whites. These guys often grow in places like trees and they like that because their roots need a lot of air to breathe and grow.”
Suzie additionally informed all seniors on how to properly care for their orchids. She pointed out that some may use an ice cube to water their orchid every week, but Suzie only recommends doing this if someone is going on vacation. The problem with the ice cube method, she explained, is that the roots of an orchid hate being cold and hate being constantly wet. It is best to water around the plant, using about a tablespoon and half of water. The leaves of the orchid also hate being wet and so Suzie further suggested to never mist the plant itself. When placing the orchid around the house, it is best to keep it out of direct sunlight, away from cold windows and/or hot furnaces.
Once all information and facts about orchids had been absorbed, it was time for these Westwood COA members to get their hands dirty. Taking the ceramic pot, each senior was instructed to fill it about ¾ the way full with the soil/wood chip mixture. They then were instructed to carefully take the orchid out of its original container, making sure not to cut off any of its roots. Once the flower was out, Suzie instructed them to gently stretch out the roots at the bottom, this way the orchid can easily absorb the nutrients and water it needs when planted.
Placing the orchid right in the middle of the pot, they would then use the remaining of their soil mixture to cover the rest of the plant. If any of the seniors had noticed when handling the orchid that it was a bit dry, they were encouraged to start watering it once they got it home.
With Valentine’s Day only being two days prior, Suzie encouraged all in attendance to further decorate their pots using the orchid print out, the wooden stick, the heart print out, the Valentine’s string, and the glue stick. While seniors were more than welcome to keep their orchids for themself, Suzie additionally mentioned that they can make for a great gift. One just needs to make sure they know who they are giving it to because an orchid symbolizes welcoming many children into the world. As this session came to end, all seniors left with a beautiful orchid in hand and the confidence to take care of it, thanks to Suzie.
