Alan Titchmarsh shares orchid care tips that help them flower 'beautifully'

Gardening guru Alan Titchmarsh has been sharing advice on plant care for years, and his guidance on nurturing indoor plants is no exception. He's particularly knowledgeable about the moth orchid, the UK's favourite orchid variety, which thrives in the warm climates of Asia and Australia - a challenging environment to mimic in the UK with its variable temperatures.

In a recent YouTube video, Alan divulged some key tips for maintaining the health of this plant. Alan explained: "There's one group of flowering plants which until recently terrified the pants off people because they thought they must be difficult to grow - the orchids.

"Then a few years ago, along came the moth orchid, phalaenopsis. Well, to be absolutely honest, it's been around for a long time. These flowers will last not weeks, but months," reports the Express.

"The trick is looking after them. Mainly not overwatering them, because if you look right down at the bottom you'll see most of them come in a transparent pot. That's because these roots here, well they're coated in something which is called phellogen."

"It absorbs atmospheric moisture but it also quite enjoys being exposed to light, so these transparent pots will allow the light to get through."

He recommended the moth orchid as an excellent choice for those new to houseplants, noting that while they are resilient, errors like overwatering can lead to fatal root rot.

Alan emphasised: "By growing them in, not really compost but chipped bark, because this is not a terrestrial orchid, one which grows in the ground, it's an epiphyte." He also provided valuable advice on watering orchids, cautioning owners against leaving it sitting in water. Be sure to let the water thoroughly drain through the soil and exit from the pot bottom.

In terms of flowering, the gardening aficionado pointed out: "If you look back at this orchid which is flowering so beautifully, you'll see that it isn't the first time it flowers. It flowered before up here, the stem was cut back... this bud grew out, and turned into another new flower spike, and that's the key."

He further explained: "If you look down the stem, you'll see scales every so often, and they're actually surrounding buds.

"If you cut back to where the stem has died a little, not going any further than that, then other stems can grow, just like this one, from these buds."