Confronting the Cockroaches that Are Out to Eat Up Your Orchid Plants

Cockroaches are among the most annoying pests with which you will have to battle in growing orchids. They can do heartbreaking damage in a scant few nights if not caught and destroyed.

Why are roaches the problem they are, and how can you deal with them?  The answer is that one of their favorite meals is a potted plant's tender young roots and flower stems. It is not unknown for the roots of a plant to be entirely chewed up in one night by these pests.

One of the biggest topics in pest control is how to deal effectively with roaches. People have been fighting with them in their homes and kitchens for centuries, and we will probably be fighting them for centuries to come. They have evolved to be incredibly successful in living amongst us and in resisting extermination.

Many poisons have been marketed in an attempt to control cockroaches. If you go the route of putting out poison, you should of course only use the ones that will not do damage to your plants. Visit the garden supplies aisle of your neighborhood hardware store.

For a less risky approach, many people have had great success with a combination of boric acid, a little sugar, and flour, mixed with water to make a paste. In your greenhouse or wherever you are growing your plants, spread some paste into corners, crevices and behind objects. To be completely safe, though, don't get any of the stuff on the plants themselves.

You might also set out some of those "roach hotels."  These will catch many roaches and keep them from getting to your plants in the first place.

Cockroaches are stubborn, though. If you truly want to keep them under control you must be prepared to look for them constantly. You should especially search for them on and around your plants in the evening, using a flashlight. They leave their hiding places in the evening to seek food and it is then that they are most easily caught and killed. Don't forget to move your pots and baskets around to uncover ones that may have run into hiding from you.

A decent guide to orchid growing will have many other tips and suggestions for making sure that pests such as roaches don't destroy your plants. The most thorough guide to expert orchid care, in the opinion of many, is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which can be downloaded online. Mr. Howard's guide is a complete course, helpful for novices and the more experienced cultivators alike. Also, be sure to visit the Orchid Secrets web site, which has an ever-growing library of postings on many topics of orchid cultivation.