Liz,

Are you sure it is an orchid, not an "amarylis" for example? What does the
bulb look like: is it huge, brown and hard? Amarylis have big brown hard
bulbs, they are becoming popular now as well, and are often sold in the same
section of the stores as orchids.

If it is an orchid though, one with pseudobulbs (does the bulb look like the
bulbs on a cactus, green and succulent), it could be a wide variety of
orchids then. Orchids are the flowering plants family with the most variety
in it. You might want to post a picture of it to
alt.binaries.pictures.orchids, or to a Web site and then send a link to the
Web site to rec.gardens.orchids.

Identifying the plant is an important first step. After that you can get
advice on it.
Best,
Joanna


"Liz Harket" wrote in message
om...
Has anyone any hints on growing orchids from scratch. I have one bulb
(i'm not even sure if that is what they are called) which has a shoot
about seven inches long, how long before it will flower? I have some
others waiting to be planted. Can they be outside in pots? I have no
greenhouse, but someone in Madeira told me that they would be OK