Vanda Help!

[Orchid Whisperer]

Another idea you might try.

As E.S. has recommended, get rid of the moss. All of it.

Cut off the black plastic basket.

Get a long clear plastic container (empty 1 liter seltzer bottles work great). You could even fasten together several cylindrical sections of plastic bottles. The lower section should have a bottom to it, with a slit or hole in the bottom for drainage. The idea is to make a cylinder long enough to accommodate the roots. Roots can wrap around a bit in the plastic bottle, so there is no need to have a bottle the full length of the roots.

Water by spraying the roots inside the container. The cylinder will keep the roots humid but the roots will also experience the necessary drying out.

I have grown and bloomed hybrid Vandas this way.

I will say that based on my experience as an indoor/outdoor grower in Georgia, I find Vandas to bloom less than I would like. For me, I am not sure they are worth the 'high maintenance' required to keep them healthy. I doubt they would ever bloom for me if I could not give them pretty strong sunlight outdoors most of the summer (not full sun, but close to it). If I lived in frost-free parts of the country and could grow them outdoors on trees or in containers all of the time, I definitely would. For now, I have no plans to buy any more vandas.

[charlesf6]

Originally Posted by estación seca

Bare-root Vandas need to be watered every day, then allowed to dry quickly.

The roots never, ever rot when bare-root and allowed to dry after each watering. But the plants dessicate if not watered every day. From time to time, I can get away with maybe 4 days without watering in the summer, when my house is pretty warm, if I keep the room really humid. But that's only after weeks of daily water, and the plants are clearly unhappy after 4 days without water.

In the winter, when it's cooler in the house, I can stretch it a little longer. But they're always happier with daily watering.

Some people here report growing them in pots, and watering once a week. These are people who don't have the time to water every day.

I am one of many here who can't keep them alive in a pot with medium under any circumstances. I can't even imagine one staying alive with wet sphagnum moss around the base of the plant. Your plant has the worst of both worlds: The dangling bare roots dry out very quickly; the mossy part stays wet too long and invites rot.

So, choose one or the other. You're not going to get those long roots into a pot without seriously damaging them. Get rid of the moss and grow that plant bare-root. Then you will be able to water it a lot more and it will most likely recover.

I am giving this plant more water than I could ever imagine giving anyone, animal, anything is this the right thing for me to do? I am soaking for 10-12 hours every 2 days and wetting the day in between.

[charlesf6]

Originally Posted by Orchid Whisperer

If I lived in frost-free parts of the country and could grow them outdoors on trees or in containers all of the time, I definitely would. For now, I have no plans to buy any more vandas.

me either. (but I like them)

[estación seca]

Originally Posted by charlesf6

I am giving this plant more water than I could ever imagine giving anyone, animal, anything is this the right thing for me to do? I am soaking for 10-12 hours every 2 days and wetting the day in between.

That's essentially what I do. Just keep it up.

The only other thing I could imagine would be to increase the humidity in that room. A friend here in town just decided to keep his Vandas in the spare bathroom, hanging from the shower curtain rack, with some water in the tub and an aquarium air pump running a bubbler in the water.

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by charlesf6

I am giving this plant more water than I could ever imagine giving anyone, animal, anything is this the right thing for me to do? I am soaking for 10-12 hours every 2 days and wetting the day in between.

I think you're giving it plenty of water. Now, it's time to relax a bit... if it suffered cold damage, it will recover. Orchids teach patience. They truly don't do anything fast, so it can be months before you see significant reward for your efforts. Look for new growth at the crown of the plant, which it will do in due course - not dramatic, but you'll see that area extend slowly. Just keep up the love!

[charlesf6]

Before 12 hour every other day soaking:



One week later + trimming:

[Roberta]

Looking happy. As weather warms you can work on the "light" requirement that it will need to bloom, because probably not getting enough. But for now, it looks like it is recovering nicely. Keep up the good work!

[Dollythehun]

Good job, Charles!