Vanda Sanderiana. What to do??

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by hanzy08

I know they have different blooming times. What I meant to say was for the size of the sanderiana that I bought, it should have already bloomed in the past.. but I don't see any signs of old spikes..

I'd give it some time. Maybe it'll bloom for you for the first time.

Ordering through the internet can be a bit of a surprise. You never really know what they'll pick out for you. The only way to know with certainty about what you're getting is when you're physically there to pick out the plants.

I really don't know what to say other than it may not have been the time or the right size for the plant to bloom, or conditions may not have been right for the plant to initiate blooms. Vanda sanderiana is a significantly larger plant than Vanda coerulea and may start their first blooms at a larger size.

The only other thing would be to find out how Hausermann's grows their Vanda sanderiana, or even ask them how long the plant has been in their nursery.

If Vandas are grown right, I wouldn't worry too much about it never blooming. It eventually will.

This species likes:

1. Bright indirect light.

2. Temperatures ranging from the warm side of intermediate to warm (60 F - 95 F).

3. Provide plenty of water year round. The potting media must drain freely, and the media should not stay wet for more than 1 day.

Vandas species are, in my experience, fairly sturdy plants. The whole reason I've stopped growing hybrids in favor of species Vandas was because I found the species to be far easier for me to grow and some of them tend to be smaller growing as well. The reason why many hybrid Vandas get very large and unmanageable for most people is because of the Vanda sanderiana in their genetics. Again, the reason why many Vanda hybrids tend to be warmer growing or brighter growing than their species counterparts is also because of the Vanda sanderiana in their genetics.

Like I've said, repotting them has not been a major issue. I've only found dividing them to be problematic.

The only problems I've ever had with Vanda roots rotting out was when they were left wet for several days and didn't have enough air circulation going to the root zone. Which is why I said what I said.

If you're looking to repot the plant, now is the perfect time. Unless you're damaging roots like no tomorrow during the process of repotting, there's nothing to worry about.

I've been growing Vanda species for several years. My Vandas range from being under my care for about 5 - 10 years and many of them bloom year-after-year like clockwork. What I'm telling you is what I've observed and have gone through, and what I believe to be the correct information based on my experiences.