To understand our light needs, you must first understand where we come from. We are not desert dwellers like our cactus cousins. Our native home is the humid, mountainous rainforests of southeastern Brazil, where we grow as epiphytes, nestled in the shady crooks of trees. We are accustomed to receiving bright, but filtered, light. The dense canopy above us breaks the harsh, direct rays of the sun, creating a dappled light environment. This means our ideal light is abundant yet indirect, mimicking the gentle sunlight that reaches the forest floor. Direct, intense sunlight, especially the scorching midday sun, is foreign and damaging to our leaves.
We communicate our comfort level with light through our foliage. If we are receiving too much direct light, our leaves will tell you. They may begin to develop a reddish or purple tint. While a slight reddening can be a normal stress response to cool temperatures, a pronounced, deep red or purple hue, especially when combined with a leathery or bleached appearance, is a clear cry for help. It means our photosynthetic tissues are being damaged by sunburn. Conversely, if we are not receiving enough light, our growth will become weak and etiolated. Our segments (the leaf pads) will be pale green, elongated, and spaced far apart as we desperately stretch towards any available light source. This weakens our overall structure and drastically reduces our ability to produce the energy needed for blooming.
For us to be at our healthiest, an east-facing window is often the perfect spot. It provides us with several hours of the gentle, morning sun, which is intense enough to fuel our growth but not so harsh that it burns us. A north-facing window can also be suitable, though the light levels may be lower. A south or west-facing window can work, but it is crucial that we are not placed directly on the windowsill. We must be set back from the glass or shielded by a sheer curtain to diffuse the intense afternoon rays. During the summer, we greatly appreciate being moved to a shaded patio or a spot under a tree, as this most closely replicates our natural, dappled-light habitat.
The most important aspect of light for us is its role in triggering our spectacular bloom. We are short-day plants, which means we require long periods of uninterrupted darkness to set flower buds. As the days grow shorter in the fall, the increased hours of darkness signal to us that it is time to prepare for our flowering season. To initiate blooming, we need approximately 12-14 hours of complete darkness each night for 6-8 weeks. Even a brief interruption from a streetlamp, a car's headlights, or an indoor lamp can disrupt this cycle and prevent bud formation. During this critical period, ensure our dark rest is absolute. Our daytime light needs during this time remain the same—bright, indirect light to power the bud development.
Our light requirements are not static throughout the year. After our blooming period concludes in late winter or early spring, we enter a growth phase. During this time, consistent bright, indirect light is essential for producing new, healthy segments and storing energy. In the hot summer months, we require protection from the intense sun. As autumn approaches, you must become vigilant about providing the long, uninterrupted dark nights we need to gift you with another season of beautiful flowers.
