I'm a gardening expert and a surprising household ingredient will keep your orchid flowering multiple times a year

A gardening expert has revealed the unlikely household ingredient that will keep orchids in bloom.

Kiva Kriti, from Harrow, north London shared her clever trick on TikTok, which has made her orchid bloom twice a year, rather than once.

The trick entails taking a banana peel and chopping it into pieces before soaking it in warm water for a couple of hours.

Once the water is infused with banana peel, Kiva then put the water in a glass and fed the orchid.

Plant lover Kiva Kriti, from Harrow, shared her clever trick on TikTok , which has made her orchid bloom twice a year, rather than just once

She then waited until water drained out of the pot before placing it back. 

Allowing plants to sit in wet pots could lead to it getting a fungal disease or it 'drowning', as it prevents oxygen from getting to it. 

The green-fingered TikToker then recommended to follow the process every ten days, before showing her vibrant plant. 

She then ended the video and said: 'Happy plant, happy you.'

A user then asked Kiva how many times she feeds this particular water to her plants.

Kiva then takes some of the water that the banana peel has been soaking in and uses it to hydrate her orchid

She responded: 'I do once a month [during] blooming time.' 

Orchids have varied blooming seasons, according to horticulturalist Victoria Lee Blackstone.

She told Hunker that potted orchids 'have varied blooming seasons, depending on their species'.

Moth orchids tend to reach blooming season in March, and if taken care of, should last 'several months'.

Ms Blackstone recommended plant enthusiasts to re-pot spring blooming Cattleyas 'immediately' after the blooming season has ended.

Plantsman Graham Rice told the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) that some species of orchid can be hard to coax into bloom more than once. Above: Moth dendrobium Orchid flower

Sometimes the roots can outgrow the container the orchid is in, so it is important to pay attention and swap to a bigger pot if needed. 

Plantsman Graham Rice also told the Royal Horticultural Society that some species of orchid can be hard to coax into bloom more than once, especially if they are growing in the house.

But revealed his trick - make sure that the temperature at night is lower than in the day time. 

He said lowering the heat by 5C in autumn can 'kick plants into flowering', adding that moving them to a different room might also work.