Comments on: Bamboo Orchid, Arundina graminifolia

By: John Bennetto

John Bennetto — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:13:12 +0000

Reply to Lance : I bought my plant from Bunnings in Cairns, North Queensland. They are a hardware chain if you don’t know them. My plant is flourishing in my semi-tropical climate and flowering regularly. Love it! John

By: Lance

Lance — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 05:51:14 +0000

To John from Brisbane, I’ve been trying to find any nursery in Australia that sells arundina with no success. Do you remember where in Cairns you got yours? My dad grows them beautifully in Los Angeles – they flower every year and grow really well in a giant clump on the side of the house – and I always wanted to try them in Sydney. Hey, I’m surprised to hear you call Brisbane temperate; I’d call it squarely subtropical and perfect for growing arundina. Thanks for a great post, Mary.

By: mary

mary — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 16:29:29 +0000

Graham,
Here in Panama the plant does require full sun. The area where we planted ours became more shaded as the years went by because of growth of the surrounding trees. The plant is still fine and blooms well, but the stems tend to lean over, searching for sun.

Dead-head, yes, but I think you’ll find that even after dead-heading, the stalk that produced the flower or flowers will die back. So rather than dead-head, I cut the entire stalk back to the ground. Always checking, of course, that there is new growth coming in. You may want to watch yours for similar behavior. Start out conservatively and simply dead-head. Then if the stem starts turning brown, just go ahead and cut it back.

Thanks for your comment, Graham. And good luck with this plant. It’s quite attractive.

By: Graham Pearce

Graham Pearce — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 16:15:17 +0000

Hi Mary,
Have just bought a potted bamboo orchid. It is about two feet high with four flowers and three buds – a total of about twenty stems. I was going to put it into a very large pot in the corner of the stoep (patio in Cape Town) but not sure if it will get enough sunlight. Should I dead head when the flowers fade ?
Graham.

By: mary

mary — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 02:18:48 +0000

Thanks, YusGob.

By: YusGob

YusGob — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 14:31:07 +0000

These orchids are found in Mauritius on the high wet grounds along the highway.

By: mary

mary — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 15:48:18 +0000

Thanks, Cyndy, for getting back on this. I hope this comment helps, June.

By: Cyndy Marquez

Cyndy Marquez — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 14:10:08 +0000

I have heard there are a few nurseries down in the Homestead area that carry them and the Homestead farmer’s market is a good place to check as they seem to carry quite a few unusual plants as well as the run of the mill stuff.

I have seen them occasionally at HomeDepot garden store. the containers are never marked, so you have to know what you are looking for and the plants I’ve seen have been beaten down. However, mine was in pretty bad shape when it was given to me, so I would probably take the chance. the 5-gallon container was priced at about $30.00

By: June

June — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 18:58:19 +0000

I would like to know where the people in South Florida found their banboo orchids? I live in South Florida and would love to give them a try

By: mary

mary — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 13:40:03 +0000

Andrea,
Yes, you should plant a bamboo orchid in soil. Good luck with it!
Mary