Hello I just bought about 100 seeds of orchis italica, More commonly called either the naked man orchid or the Italian orchid. I want to know what is the best soil to grow the seeds in? I also want to know if at a later time if I should plant them in the orchid mixes that you see in Home Depot and Lowe's

I've never grown this orchid but it looks like, to get the seeds to germinate, you need a particular soil fungus. Did the seeds come with the fungus or inoculated with the fungus?

https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.as...

And this from 1001gardens.org: "This species can be observed from full light to partial shade, on calcareous substrates (lean grasslands, open garrigues, light woods) up to 1300 m altitude".

That means the plants grow in alkaline calcium rich but nutrient poor soil.

Sorry I can't be more helpful.

You may have been snookered! Ripped off. Or threw your money away. You can't germinate orchid seeds the way that you can germinate tomato's or cucumbers.

Daisy is 100% correct in pointing out the ages old association of orchid seeds and mychorrhizal fungi.
You can't use a bark mix or anything like that. A large number of terrestrial orchids that we have here in the states, come from tiny little corms or little bulb like structures. Those sprout at some point in the year and the orchid develops from that. It flowers and dies back to the teeny tiny corm before winter.
Those terrestrial orchids do produce seeds that often fall to the ground but only germinate if a very specific collection of conditions exist. It will nearly impossible to recreate those conditions using an orchid mix, potting soil or peat moss.
Sorry to be such a downer but as an orchid judge, a fellow judge brought this very notion up at an orchid show two weeks ago. He asked, "Has anyone seen these orchid seeds for sale on E-bay?" We all had a good chuckle over it because we all know about orchid seeds and how nearly impossible they are to grow by conventional means.
I mean take a look at a ripe, Cattleya seed pod. It is the size of a small pickle. There could be 2-3 million seeds in the pod. They are the size of a dust particle. When the seed is released and spread by the wind, that pod, 2-3 million seeds, may produce a half dozen seedlings who manage to blow into just the right niche in the crotch of a tree on a crevice in a rock. It is astronomically long odds.

But never the less, good luck.

Let me be clear I am fully aware of the symbiotic nature of orchids and soil fungi, and have already bought a mycorrhizae supplement for the soil. And for the record I am not so interested in making a big beautiful flower. I am not seeking any prize or entering any competition

No one said that you were.

It is just that recent research in the field of orchid seed germination would indicate that a lot of orchids germinate with a very, very specific fungus around. Just be prepared that this idea of yours might work, and then again, it might not.

Illinois College Professor Dr. Richardson is doing a lot of research on fungi and their relationships with native Florida orchids. I spent 9 years in Florida and he came to the Naples Society once every July. The society generously supported his work.
This info probably can be found on line in case you are interested.

I've been thinking about potting mix. I grow native plants just because. Kellogg's Cactus mix has the least nutrients of any soil I have found. Maybe Kellogg's with a lot of marble or limestone chips mixed in. "Calcareous soils in grassland, garigue and open places in pine woodland" doesn't sound like a wet place to me (my terrestrials all live in wet spots) so the cactus soil with added marble/limestone chips might work. I love experiments - I''m one of the few in the state of Nevada who has successfully grown Desert Peach (Prunus andersonii) but it took 5 or 6 years to be successful.

Thank you so much Daisy!