you're lucky living in zone 9, you can grow and bloom my favorite kinds of orchids. first, you don't grow most tropical orchids in the ground. the majority of them are epiphytes, which means they cling the the bark of trees and take their sustenance from decaying leaves, dead bugs and rain water. there are a lot of terrestrial orchids, those that grow in the ground, but i would just recommend epiphytes. i have a few questions for you. how often does it rain where you are? are you a chronic waterer or a forgetter? forgetters do best with orchids, since most like to dry out completely. indirect sun is the best, full sun and the leaves will burn. i would suggest some sort of intergeneric, they're much easier to grow than species. look for something like a blc (brassolaeliacattleya) or slc (sophrolaeliacattleya) or hawkinsara, potinara, ascocenda, vandopsis. once you decide on the plant you want to grow, then you decide on the media and pot to put them in. with very little rain or watering, i would suggest growing most orchids in a mix of course orchid bark, charcoal and sphagnum moss. you can buy premade mixes and add in the sphag. there are lots of different orchid pots and baskets available also. make sure you buy something with good drainage. all the pots have advantages and they all have their drawbacks. i put the orchids that like to get good and dry in wooden slat baskets, although mounting is a possibility too. the ones that prefer to be a bit moister will go into plastic pots or clay, depending on what they are. you have lots of orchid societies and nurseries around you and any of them should be able to help you. don't go to the box stores, their plants usually aren't very healthy and the staff has no knowledge of the plants they sell. spend the money and get good sized, healthy ones, at least to start. soak the bark over night in water so it holds as much as possible. once you pot them, water them really good one time and then let them dry out completely. this is encourage new root growth. hopefully this will at least get you started

I would say that as far as rain goes, we are drier than average for our area, something about our specific location on this barrier island, I can sometimes literally see the rain falling two blocks north and south but nothing at our house. I'm also more prone to be a forgetful waterer vs. a meticulous waterer, particularly when I consider where these will hang. I have to admit, the further from the hose spigot or from the house I have to go with the watering can the less often I water.

Thank you so much for the recommendations. I know that we have a local orchid society so I'm going to google both the varieties you recommended as well as the society to look into where they recommend to purchase. I believe there is a small nursery south of here that has a good variety of orchids.

Thank you again.

Welcome! Your first orchid! And you live in a terrific part of the country for growing orchids. You're asking the right questions, and Cody's suggestions are good.

If you go to that nursery, or somewhere else, tell them the aspects of your "environment" - light and rainfall, and that you're getting your first orchid. They'll be able to recommend several types of orchids that will be suitable for your place.

One question for you is the "dappled shade." What % full sunlight would you estimate will get to your orchid? (It may vary by morning, noon, and afternoon.) That will be important for the nursery staff when making suggestions for an orchid.

Once you decide on an orchid... or two, :) staff will know options for the type pot and potting medium. Be sure and tell them your orchid will hang in a tree so they'll include a pot hanger, or you can make your own. Just look in an orchid supply catalog to see what they look like. (See link below.)

You'll also need a fertilizer suitable for orchids and a schedule for fertilizing. Be sure and ask what strength the fertilizer mixture should be, if it's different from directions on the label.

Ask how dry the potting medium should be before you water and how to tell when the medium is that dry. That last one may sound strange, but it's critical for the health of your orchid. You're in luck, being a "forgetter," aka "underwaterer."

Water - if your water is softened, the salt will kill your orchid. You'll need to buy distilled water or filtered water that grocery stores here sell by the gallon from a stand with a spigot.

Watering - water at the top of the potting medium until water runs out the bottom of the pot, then for 1-2 seconds longer.

Another factor - because fertilizer salts build up in potting media, they need to get "flushed out" or "leached" periodically.

Leaching means running regular water through the pot like you're watering it three times.

If your plant's in bark (actually, a mixture of bark and other ingredients), the rule of thumb is to leach every 4th watering, with the 1st watering tap water, the 2nd fertilizer water, and the 3rd tap water.

If it's in sphagnum moss, it's every 3rd watering: 1st watering is plain water, 2nd is fertilizer water, 3rd is leaching.

The nursery staff will also know about pests in trees and hopefully effective prevention.

You can ask all these questions here, too. However, people who live in other parts of the country - such as myself - will have limited experience with your environment. An orchid friend moved from Minneapolis to Florida and needed to change a lot of what she'd been doing in Minnesota.

Caveat - there may be other factors to consider. Hopefully, others will chime in.

Whitecat8

Here is a link that might be useful: Kelley's Korner Orchid Supplies

Whitecat8: Thank you so very much. I had no idea about alternating the method of watering or the leaching out of salt. You've given me a very helpful head start !

My only concern for you living so close to the sea would be salt-laden breezes. Most orchids are forest dwellers and not at all tolerant of coastal locations. An exception are many types of the reed stem Epidendrums which can often be found growing at the seaside here in Brazil sometimes in full sun. There also some excellent low maintenance hybrids available. Cattleya intermedia also grows close to the sea but needs a little more shade.

I believe that I will try to find a Cattleya intermedia, there is plenty of shade back there. Off to google and research, thank you.

You're welcome!