Paphiopedilum venustum x sukhakulii

How to grow this miniature indoor orchid

One of my favourite houseplants is the miniature hybrid slipper orchid Paphiopedilum venustum x sukhakulii. I love its exotic impossibly detailed flowers and the attractive mottled leaves.

Slipper orchids are surprisingly simple to look after. They’re one of our easiest houseplants and they pump out flowers reliably every year, lasting for around a month each.

Like moth orchids (Phalaenopsis) slipper orchids are grown in chunky bark based compost, which is naturally peat-free. You can buy ready packaged orchid mix, which is perfect. The main difference is that slipper orchids like the mix a tiny bit damper, but not soaking.

The key is to water gently every week or so, slightly less in winter if you notice the mix remaining damper longer. Weight is a good indicator of water, and checking the holes at the bottom of the pot to see if the chunky pieces are still damp.

When I water I add a little orchid fertiliser, which is seaweed based and organic. Every one in four or five waters I leave out the fertiliser and only use water. This helps rinse out excess fertiliser if it’s built up too much.

Also like moth orchids, once the flowers are spent, you can cut off the flower stem. The plant is then a set of leaves and people often mistakenly think the plant has died but far from it. The orchids are simple taking a break to build energy for flowers in the future.

In terms of light, Paphiopedilum enjoy bright light but not direct sunlight, which can scorch their leaves. I grow ours on the edge of our south facing window, just to the side of the frame. Here they get very bright indirect light for most of the day, with the occasional blast of direct sunlight at its most gentle in the early morning or late afternoon. This seems to work perfectly.

Over time slipper orchids reproduce by growing new shoots from the base. Eventually you can have many flowers appearing at the same time. You can also separate these to produce new plants for free. Do this after flowering.

I bought this little plant in 2019 and it’s happily flowered and multiplied each year ever since. All for very little effort.

Continue learning…