The Wind of Change for Thailand’s Orchid Export

At Excel Orchid Farm in Ratchaburi province, one of the largest orchid nurseries in Thailand, Piyada Sanguthai says global warming and climate change is already having an affect on Thailand's orchid production.

“The changing weather patterns are pushing the crops out of their ideal humidity and temperature ranges for optimal growth and also resulting in an increase in crop-damaging insects. We try and use the minimal amount of pesticide as possible, but the increase in insects has forced us to increase the frequency with which we treat the plants.”

With much of Thailand still recovering from the recent raging flood waters, and Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University forecasting the country will experience the metrological phenomena La Nina this year, orchid growers are keeping a nervous eye on the situation to ensure the county’s prized blooms remain unaffected.

In 2009 exports of Thailand’s tropical orchids topped more than US$80 million (2.5 billion baht), with more than 24,000 metric tons of cut orchid flowers and more than 30,000 pellets/units of live orchid plants being shipped out of the kingdom -- 77 percent of all exported Thai floricultural products.

At Excel, like most of Thailand’s commercial orchid nurseries, the delicate and beautiful blooms are grown on old coconut husks sitting atop simple wooden platforms above the ground, their delicate velamen-covered roots dangling in a contorted fashion towards the ground, safe from any flood waters barring something on a biblical scale.

In Pattaya though, the situation is different. Siriporn Pongsang is owner of Siriporn Orchids, a smaller boutique-style orchid nursery that supplies flowers for local consumption and also opens for tourists interested in viewing and buying a wide variety of orchid species.

While many of the orchids at Siriporn Orchids are also grown in coconut husks on simple wooden shelves, many taller species are grown on the ground. Siriporn says the colder than usual weather this year, along with heavier than usual rainfall, is a concern, delivering the plants too much water and delaying the blooming season.

“It’s been very wet and cold this year and that has meant we’ve had to take steps to increase drainage to protect the plants’ roots. Many people are not aware that orchids need only a small amount of water to bloom and too much water or cold weather can hurt them a lot,” she says.