Orchids are precious houseplants known for their beauty and fragrance, but they require extra care if you want them to bloom.

Fertilising your orchids can be a real game changer when getting your houseplant to bloom.

Having heard raving reviews about using banana peel water on orchids, one gardening enthusiast decided to test this hack out and shared the results on the Orchids Tips and Tricks Facebook page.

Sarah Turner said: “People here keep mentioning watering their orchids with banana peel water and how they flower after doing so. 

“Confirming I did so, and now I have many flower stems growing! Thanks team – this group is awesome.”

Explaining in the comments how she made it, Sarah said: “I just put a banana peel in water and left it a few days then used. I added a new peel refilled the water and kept going a bit.

“I just swapped normal watering for banana watering for a few cycles and now I’m back to normal – the spikes and blooms followed a few weeks after watering with the banana water.”

Many group members commented on the post claiming that they also noticed great results after using banana peel water.

Kathleen Vaida said: “I use banana water on all my flowering plants and some I didn’t even know flower. 

“All my orchids have new spikes and two other plants flowered that I didn’t know about.”

Ila Peters wrote: “I have used the banana peels and water method and my orchids soon had flower spikes.”

Denise Sanders claimed: “I have gotten flower spikes and lots of new roots doing this process. Who knew?” Amber Ivey said: “I use banana water on all of my houseplants. They love it.”

While the use of banana water had raving reviews, one orchid owner claimed that there’s a “better” kitchen item to combine with water to use as fertiliser.

Judie Varty said: “I have tried the banana water, but garlic water works better than banana peels. It really did the trick for me. I got so many roots after using it and all my dormant plants bloomed like crazy this year.”

Not only does its smell keep certain pests at bay, but garlic also works to fertilise the soil as it’s rich in phosphorus, a nutrient that helps plants grow abundantly, and potassium, which will keep your plant’s leaves and flowers in their best shape.

To make the garlic water solution, simply peel a few garlic cloves, and then crush, blend, or cut them before adding them to a container of your choice filled with water. 

Let the mixture sit for at least a day, or two to three days for an even better result, in a cool, dark place before use.

As exciting as the power of garlic water is, don’t use it on your plants every day. It’s best to limit spraying once or twice a week at most. Too much garlic could end up hindering your plants’ growth.