For Swamper - My young Vanilla Planifolia - Orchid Board

jenmonkey · #1 07-26-2010, 08:52 PM

As requested, here are a couple of pics of my very young Vanilla planifolia that I am attempting to grow in my bathroom window. It gets daily light from a northeastern window and I regulate the levels by adjusting the blinds. I also have a cool-air allergen-filtering humidifier in the tiny little room for evening hours to keep the humidity up near the ultra-high levels that Vanilla like.

I bought a rooted 4" cutting from Logee's online, and when it arrived it was tiny and two of the three leaves were brownish and spotted. I planted it immediately in a small container with some medium orchid bark mix and then went about my business. In the last 3 to 4 months since then, it has tripled in length and developed many healthy leaves and air roots, but I have sadly just discovered my near-fatal error with this plant.

When I planted it, I did not remove all of the old potting material that it was shipped with. As a result, I noticed today that the poor little dear has begun to rot from the base, and I may or may not be able to save it. It was shipped with a rotting foam core around the one root and a lot of rotting moss around it. I should have immediately removed it, but I was too green to know that. Now that I have cleaned and pruned it and repotted it in some 3-1-1 fertilized orchid bark mix, I am praying for the best. I spritz it in the mornings with a weak fertilized purified water solution, and it should now be getting sufficient air flow to the one little root. I will try to keep this post updated, because the Vanilla orchid is somewhat underrepresented in the forums, from what I can tell. this was my second orchid ever, and I really am attached to it.

And now, some tiny pictures of my tiny Vanilla orchid! The final pic includes one of my Phal's, which absolutely loves hanging out with my Vanilla.

-Jen

Izzie · #2 07-26-2010, 08:59 PM

Where is your bark mix from? It looks like it has potting soil in it?

jenmonkey · #3 07-26-2010, 09:17 PM

It's just from my local nursery, mixed with some peat, some moss, some styrofoam, and some charcoal.

Swamper · #4 07-26-2010, 09:45 PM

Very cool Jen. I love it and yes I don't think enough people grow vanilla although I suspect there are a lot of closet vanilla growers LOL. I'm glad you caught your mistake and I hope it works out and do keep us posted.
P.S. I gotta know.....what is that thing in your avatar. Whatever it is I think I want one.

jenmonkey · #5 07-26-2010, 10:25 PM

Glad you like the pics, and I hope I can inspire others to try to grow these very cool orchids. Even if I never get it to flower, the idea of an 80-foot vine winding around my shower is awesome!

I'm committed to posting updated pics as it grows, with any luck.

That thing in my avatar is one of my favorite creatures in the whole world, and, if you look closely, you can see a line-drawing version of one tattooed on my wrist in my Zygopetalum post.

Let's see if you can figure out what it is by three clues and a Google.

1. It is a marsupial, though you rarely see its pouch.
2. It has a strange physical characteristic that is usually attributed to old-world monkeys called ischial callosities on its rear end.
3. It is indiginous to only two countries on one continent in the whole world.

Anyone??

As you can see, I have an affinity for the exotic, the strange, and the so-ugly-they're-cute things in the world.

-Jen

Mikeg · #6 07-26-2010, 10:37 PM

Is it a Wallaby?

Izzie · #7 07-26-2010, 11:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikeg

Is it a Wallaby?

Not at all.

Mikeg · #8 07-26-2010, 11:53 PM

It's a Wombat lol

jenmonkey · #9 07-27-2010, 12:10 AM

Winner!! I love love LOVE wombats. Look them up on YouTube, you'll be in love like me.

Ahem. Yeah... Vanilla orchids... kinda boring until they flower.

Love them anyway though.

-Jen

epiphyte78 · #10 07-27-2010, 05:48 AM

This last May I said what the heck and bought a 1' cutting of a Vanilla vine for $3 at a local orchid auction. It's almost certainly not going to make it outside year around here in SoCal but I was curious how long it would last.

I placed it in a 2 gallon plastic pot filled with large-sized ground cover bark from home depot. I left 2 leaves above the bark and then set the pot right up against my Cedar Tree...where it would get some direct afternoon sun.

Once the pot was in place I pointed to the four Philodendrons species starting to vigorously climb up the tree and told the Vanilla vine to take notes.

So far it hasn't produced any new shoots but the leaves are really turgid so I'm guessing that it has already produced roots. We'll see if it manages any growth before winter.