Ok, I've done a bad thing and ordered stuff I know nothing about...

[Becca]

Kathy, would you mind if I ask who you purchased your soon to arrive 'chids from? I have a bad filling from looking at how you listed the names that you ordered from an ebay seller call bill_asia (oh that hurt to say his name!). Please please please tell me this is not so? He has a very bad reputation for sending severly dehydrated plants due to his process of treating the orchids with insecticids n such. I have been a victim of buying plants from him purely out of "prettiness" too when I first started growing orchids. It was a hard lesson to learn. Not much survived that I bought from him, and it took most a good year or two for them to turn around, and those are the ones that didn't die on me. Make sure you take a lot of pictures of the roots and the orchids as soon as they arrive so you will have evidence if you need to make a complaint to him. He didn't make me send mine back but did send replacements...but they were almost just as bad!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Vanda Gordon Dillon is the most demanding plant you'll be growing.

It needs very strong indirect light (like the kind from a bright sunny porch).

The reason why people grow Vandas bareroot is because they like a lot of air circulation going around the roots. There are pics on this forum of Vandas growing on trees in nature. Of all the pics I've seen there is very little to no moss covering them.

Growing a Vanda bareroot usually entails that it is in a basket with no media covering them.

But you are also able to mount them onto a log bareroot.

Vandas are large plants that can get to be well over 10 ft tall.

Luckily blooming sized plants are much smaller.

Most Vandas are intermediate to warm growing plants. Vanda Gordon Dillon falls into this category because of the Euanthe (Vanda) sanderiana in it's bloodline.

Vandas are slow growing, putting out around 2 leaves a year (maybe 4 if it's feelin' it). They start showing signs of heavy growth during the spring and continues through fall. Winter is when they stop growing or slow down their growing.

Keeping it well watered is important. Do not allow the roots to get weak. Weak roots are thin and twiggy. Healthy roots are very thick, (about 1/2" in diameter).

Good luck, this is a nice one when it's in bloom. They aren't the easiest plants to bloom, but they're worth the effort.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Cattleyas grow bright as well (indirect strong light like the bright and sunny porch kind of light).

Pot culture is commonly used to grow Cattleyas. Large wood chips is fine for the potting medium. New pseudobulbs should be plump and the leaves leathery.

Cattleyas always bloom from a flower sheath from the new growths only.

Grow potbound.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

BTW if you like Vandas, there are cooler growing species. Vanda coerulea being one of them...

[camille1585]

Originally Posted by KathyKayserKonig

What is CHC? I am glad someone else recognized one of these names! I hope I am able to do it justice.

CHC is coconut husk chunks/chips. It's basically the husk cut up into pieces of varying sizes depending what you need.

[Grandma M]

I live in Michigan and grow my vandas indoors, under lights. The JVB Gordon Dillon should be a very nice bloom but it will need a lot of light to get it to bloom. I don't have that one but I do have a couple similar to yours. I have found that any vanda with JVB in it will take LOTS of light, and yes, they do grow quite tall in time.

I have mine in wood baskets, bareroot. I hang mine because the roots can become quite long. Every morning I water the roots well, until they turn green.

It is possible to grow them in pots with either bark or CHC but keep in mind that you will need to water not only the medium in the pots, but also the air roots which will grow on the stem above the surface. You may find that the best way to water them is to take them to the kitchen sink and spray them well.

I love vandas and it is so thrilling to bring them into bloom. Good luck growing your new babies. Don't get uptight about growing them, just enjoy them. Orchids are soooo beautiful

Marilyn

[KathyKayserKonig]

Originally Posted by Becca

Kathy, would you mind if I ask who you purchased your soon to arrive 'chids from? o

Alas, I did buy them from him. I wish I had found this board sooner. I am really quite scared of what I am going to receive now. When these things do arrive, do I immediately put them in this SuperThrive stuff bare rooted? What do you recommend I do. I had a feeling after I started on this board that ordering these was a stupid thing to do. Now I know it was. If you have any ideas as to what to do when these arrive, let me know. Thanks for the idea about the pictures!

[Becca]

Well like others have recommended, I would soak them in a super thrive solution as well for a couple of hours...bare root and all, but I would take pictures of the roots and leaves first! You will want to check the root systems really well when you first get them. Make sure the roots are firm and not squishy rotted or empty dried out papery (is that a word?) filling. I bought a B. David Sanders from him as well....the roots were so dehydrated that I could bring them back. It probably didn't help that I was such a beginner I didn't know what the heck to do to revive them, but I really don't think there is much to do. The 'chids will need a lot of TLC and will need some decent humidity to recover in. And I know that at least the last 4 on your list are intermediate temperature growers. The only other recommendation is to just stay as far away as possible from this seller! I have heard of a few others who have received plants from him that wasn't as in bad of shape as what I received, so maybe you will luck out and they will be ok. Feel free to ask us more when you receive them and have a better feeling for their condition!

Oh...and I have missed this in a previous thread, but do you have potting medium on hand for dendrobium, cattleya, and phal yet? If not I can point you in the direction of some great pre-made mixes....a bit spendy, but well worth it in my experience!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

If I may make a recommendation. For beginners, I recommend growing either near blooming sized (NBS) plants or blooming sized plants (BS). Whether you choose to buy divisions or not is up to you, it really doesn't matter.

Beware though, I've seen a few places sell seedlings as NBS plants. When in doubt check.

This way, you will not be discouraged by how long it takes for the plant to bloom. Unfortunately, in this situation, you get what you pay for.

I forgot to tell you...Vanda seedlings take between 5 to 10 yrs to bloom.

On the bright side, it won't take so long for large seedling sized small to medium Cattleyas and small to medium Dendrobiums to become blooming sized plants.

[dounoharm]

Orchids by Hausermann:
Orchids By Hausermann
they have a marvelous selection of bloomers available online....and they sell large plants....i think they are one of the best online stores....my humble opinion....and they probably sell superthrive too, they sell all sorts of supplies...