Vanda leaf spotting

[farley101]

Hey all,

I acquired a young vanda last fall that I'm trying to find out if it's having issues or not. As far as I can tell, the leaves haven't grown for at least the last month, but my conditions aren't exactly conducive to vanda growth in the wintertime. The roots are growing like crazy though, I soak them for a few hours every 2-3 days. I have noticed that the third leaf down has a lot of tiny black spots, but comparing some older pics they don't look to be spreading. Is this a concern that I need to get on top of as it's affecting growth or just keep monitoring to see if it gets worse. Pics below. Thanks!

Most recent


Pic from a month ago, different angle but seems like spots have been stable but that leaf hasn't grown at all!

[aliceinwl]

I don’t know if this will help, but I soak my Vandas nightly sometimes I’ll skip a night on the one I have potted in rocks if the roots haven’t completely dry by nightfall . I also fertilize weakly a couple of times per week. Mine are all continuously pushing leaves as well as roots.

In terms of spotting, the spots on yours don’t quite look like the spots on mine. One of mine developed spotting due to a combination of cold temperatures and water on the leaves. It was supposed to be temperature tolerant, but it wasn’t able to tolerate much in terms of winter conditions outside ;-) I brought it inside where it’s warmer and no further spotting appeared. If you’re growing yours on the cool side, you may want to try to warm it up.

[farley101]

Hey Alice, thanks for the reply. I am hoping now that we are closer to spring we'll get some natural warmth to help out! Next year I am planning on a larger indoor growspace for the winter to keep everyone happy!

How long do you soak yours each day? I have been doing several hours when I do, but sometimes I forget and leave it overnight which may not be helping anything either!

Thanks again!

[aliceinwl]

I started out soaking for a few hours, but I’ve been doing overnight soaks for the last 10 months or so. As long as they get a chance to dry out during the day they’re fine. I have three small ones bareroot that I hang in a bathroom window during the day and a fourth potted in granite stones. At night, I put them all in cups of water and then rehang them when I get up in the morning.

Kelpmax also really seems to stimulate root growth like crazy and I try to dose mine with some every one to two months. It might be worth getting some if you feel like your plant really needs a “kick”.

[farley101]

Glad to hear I'm not causing major issues with my forgetful watering habits! I'll keep an eye on it, I had it in my small heated grow space for a while before it was taking up too much space and got moved to house temps. I'm sure it'll liven up when it gets to spend time in nice summer temps and humidity!

Thanks!

[jpope42]

I do a weekly soak alternating between kelpmax and a weak solution of plant food, Water every other day during the week. I'm in a hot humid climate so that works for mine.