Whoa--be careful! You are in USDA zone 11 and orchids love the humidity and temperature in this zone. I know people in my zone 11b who are addicted to orchids. If your first orchids flourish, and you have a green thumb, then watch out, before you know it, you will be adding and adding to your collection. Of course, if you truly love orchids, and are willing to spend money and time to devote to them, then yes, take the plunge. Guaranteed, they will make you happy!

Hi

Since Costa Rica has 1700 species of native orchids you should be able to find a couple??lol Where are you located as to altitude and rainfall?? Guessing that over 90 percent will thive as garden plants even the imports,with very little care .Exceptions might be cool growers??

i was always concerned with the markets there as to the source of the plants . Was afraid they were taking them out of the rainforests be sure to buy from reputable dealers.

I had always wanted to move there particularly to mid altitude but wife abhors all the creepy crawlies !! Good luck gary.

Thanks everyone for the feedback. We are in the mountains at altitude 3500
ft. We will be coming out of our
summer/dry season in another month or so, and then starts our winter/rainy
season. It’s nothing like monsoon
weather but more like Florida rains.
Mornings are sunny.. then in the afternoon it rains and then clears up
an hour or two later and the sun is back out. It’s not really humid here..
is that something that orchids require?

@ Gary.. tell your wife the "creepy crawlies" aren't really that bad. Yes we see bugs, but no more than we saw when we lived in Indiana. The bugs are just different and a bit bigger... but most are outside and if you treat your yard once a month you don't have much of an issue. In the 14 months we've been here, we've encountered one snake, 2 tarantula, 2 giant grasshoppers, a few cockroaches, no scorpions and all have been seen only outside.

Is there an orchid society in the area? If so it would be a great opportunity to join. Local knowledge means the most.

Is Finka Bellavista, a treehouse development, near you? Looks interesting on the web...

Your location, tropical montane, would be more ideal for more orchids than many other places. I'm closer to the equator than you but in the lowlands. So it gets much hotter and fewer orchids like that. I have to be careful what I try to grow and have lost a lot of plants that just couldn't cope. It's a whole of year thing, you not only have to get them through the wet season which is usually fine, but also through a long hot dry season. So I think your altitude will be a great advantage to you.