Can I revive ailing cymbidium?

ORIGINATING in China, Japan, South East Asia and Australia, some of the 50 species are terrestrial or ground-dwelling, while others attach themselves to trees or rocks.

- Ellen Peacock, Stanley, County Durham

Q My friend was going to throw away her cymbidium orchid because it has not bloomed for four years, and a mass of dry-looking roots rise 3in (8cm) above the pot. I have taken it on, so how do I make her wish she’d kept it? Ellen Peacock, Stanley, County Durham