Bamboo orchid Dendrobium nobile violet

Credit: Motohiro Sunouchi

Yellow bamboo orchids Dendrobium nobile in the ground

Credit: Maja Dumat

Bamboo orchid flowers Dendrobium nobile yellow

Credit: Density

Epiphytic orchid Dendrobium nobile

Credit: Kuo-Chu Yueh

Bamboo orchid (Dendrobium nobile), an orchid with a haughty habit

Dreaming of an orchid with an upright habit and fragrant flowers? Dendrobium nobile is just what you're looking for. In the wild, bamboo orchids grow on tall trees in mountainous regions from the Himalayas to Vietnam. With its shrub-like appearance and hyacinth-like fragrance, this flowering perennial has everything to please you.

How to recognize the bamboo orchid Dendobium nobile?

Dendrobium nobile is an epiphytic, rhizomatous orchid. Rarely exceeding 50 centimetres in height, this plant has an upright habit.

Dendrobium nobile owes its nickname of bamboo orchid to its green, fleshy pseudobulbs, reminiscent of reed stems. Called canes, they support the limbs and flowers.

The leathery, alternate leaves appear to be folded in half along the central vein. Lanceolate, they measure five to ten centimetres long and two centimetres wide. The semi-evergreen foliage lives for an average of two years.

Unlike phalaenopsis hybrid and the Cymbidium orchid, the bamboo orchid does not develop a flowering spike. The seven-centimetre flowers are arranged along the canes, singly, in pairs or in groups of three. In the botanical variety, sepals and petals are white with pink or mauve tips. The labellum, with its brown heart, has a white or yellow center and a purple border. Dendrobium nobile hybrids are also available in white, yellow, pink, violet or orange.

Bamboo orchids are not toxic to humans or pets. The plant is even used in Chinese medicine to treat all kinds of ailments. It is used, for example, as a painkiller and in ophthalmological preparations. However, its use is reserved for experienced herbalists.

Our maintenance tips

Bamboo Orchids are easier to care for than they appear. They need only be watered regularly and fertilized most of the year. If your Bamboo orchid is an indoor plant, it will nevertheless need to spend some time outdoors to flower again.

Watering

Bring water to your Bamboo orchid when its substrate is dry. Water the substrate with non-calcareous water at room temperature, preferably rainwater.

Moisten the growing medium without wetting the leaves and flowers. If you notice water stagnating in the heart of the plant, gently wipe it away with absorbent paper.

Spray

To provide your Dendrobium nobile with the necessary humidity, mist its foliage with non-calcareous water at room temperature. If filtered water is not available, you can collect rainwater and use it for misting.

Repotting

Every spring, repot your Dendrobium nobile to give it more space.

As a reminder, repotting should never be carried out during the flowering period. It would be fatal to buds and flowers.

Bamboo Orchids are epiphytic. They don't need potting soil, but a highly draining mixture. You can buy orchid substrate that's just right for them. You can also prepare your own growing medium by mixing peat, sand, perlite and bark.

Get a plastic perforated pot two centimetres larger than the previous one. It doesn't need to be transparent. Moisten the necessary amount of substrate as you prepare your Bamboo orchid for repotting.

Carefully remove your plant from its previous container. Remove the substrate and, if necessary, cut off any dead roots. If your Bamboo orchid has dried-out canes, do not repot it. Keep four vigorous canes in your pot. If there are more, you can divide your plant.

Bamboo Orchids the new pseudobulbs all grow in the same direction. To give your plant more room, place the old canes towards the back, against the wall of the pot.

Fill the pot with substrate until the rhizome is covered. But be careful not to bury it too deeply! It should be flush with the underside of the growing medium. You can also install a stake to support the stem.

The month after repotting, stop fertilizing and watering. Instead, mist the surface of the substrate daily.

Fertilization

Fertilize your plant all year round, except in midsummer.

Fertilize your Bamboo orchid with a low-nitrogen fertilizer, such as an orchid fertilizer.

Prune

The dried-out canes continue to act as a reserve for the plant. If they get in the way, you can cut them off at the base. Use a clean instrument to prevent the spread of disease. However, always keep at least four canes.

Cutting

Cutting is carried out during the strong growth phase, generally in spring and early summer.

In Hawaii, keiki means baby. This term refers to the offshoots produced by bamboo Orchids.

Keikis appear at the end of canes. They are generally a sign that your plant is suffering (too much or too little water, low humidity, lack of light, etc.).

Cut the keiki under a knot using clean, sharp pruning shears. The larger it is, the greater your chances of success. Ideally, the roots should measure seven centimetres and the young shoot should have at least one leaf.

Re-pot keikis in a substrate suitable for epiphytic orchids. You can use a commercially available growing medium or make your own mixture of peat, sand and perlite.

For a month after repotting, mist the substrate rather than watering it. You can also place the pot on a saucer filled with clay balls to increase humidity.

Diseases / Threats

Grey rot - Botrytis

Red spiders

Mealybug, accompanied by ants for its honeydew.

Mealybugs

Information

Family	Orchids - Orchidaceae
Type	Bamboo orchid - Dendrobium
Species	Bamboo orchid - Dendrobium nobile
Lifecycle	Perennial
Foliage	Semi-evergreen
Exposure	Half-shade
Substrat	Humus soil
Planting methods	In pots In tubs
Categories	Interior Rhizome Flowery
Tags	Beginner Flowery Fritillary
Origins	South Asia Southeast Asia
Hardiness (USDA)	11a
Leaf color
Flower colors