By Nazario Rodriguez Jr.
Horizon news staff

Over 40 orchid lovers in Palau, mostly women, have attended a five-hour Home Garden-Orchid Training Course conducted by the Taiwan Technical Mission and the Bureau of Agriculture last Tuesday April 17 at the Bai ra Amayong Cultural Center.
The participants learned the concept of home gardening for the orchids, practiced orchid transplant, familiarized with the basic materials for orchid planting and learned the practical management skills and techniques.
The activity was a follow-up to the first training held in April last year, which guest speaker James Y.H. Chou, counselor of the Taiwan Embassy in Palau, said made the first step to pioneer local orchid planting.
Chou encouraged the participants to acquire the basic skills and make Palau an orchid center in the future.
He also thanked BOA Director Fernando Sengebau and TTM Leader Dr. Ming-Lii Sheu and Mrs. Sheu, whom he said has a very important role in pushing this course.
Dr. Hseu discussed the TTM’s five main purposes in orchid development in Palau. These are to collect the basic information for orchid development in Palau, to practice planting and find the suitable orchid in Palau, to show the real orchid development technique, open the orchid planting training in Palau and help more orchid lovers to establish the Orchid Garden in Palau.
The participants learned orchid development in relation to light, water, temperature, air movement, humidity, potting media, fertilizing and repotting.
They also learned bout issues on insects and diseases as well as problems with the environment in relation to orchid planting such as over-watering, under-watering, over-fertilization, sunburn or too much light, too little light and bud drop.
According to Hseu, some orchids are suitable in Palau tropic climate but there is a need to observe in a continuous manner.
He said that the development of orchid in Palau must come from small seedling to flowering because there is no shortcut method.
Hseu said that, usually the small seedling to flowering is done in one-and-a-half to two years but depend upon management.
He also concluded by saying that orchid development in Palau could be home garden or commercial.
He said that, except for seedling and fertilizer, the media for planting could be found in locally.