Vanda Boonyarit growing conditions and time till blooming size?

[itzi]

I've gotten a Vanda Boonyarit Spots that seems to be healthy, aside from some minor damage to its large root system. Its also young, with seven total 7-8" leaves and a 3" stem height. I grow it hanging in front of a west-facing window, and temps around it range from 75-85 in the day, and 70-75 at night. Humidity varies from 35%-50%.

I've seen multiple people on this forum say that Vanda sanderiana hybrids are often slower growing, larger, and have more intense temperature/humidity needs than other species and hybrids. According to orchidroots, my vanda matches 70% with that species, though im not exactly sure what that means. What should I expect for proper growing conditions, and time until blooming size?

Also, its been fun reading through the years of posts on this section of the forum, theres so much valuable information! Thank you all for that

[Ray]

Very sunny, hot, humid. Water at least daily, saturating the roots each time, and feed relatively heavily while in active growth.

To me, a good, healthy plant is likely to have several pairs of 10”-12” leaves, and be between 18” & 24” tall to be of blooming size.

Don’t focus on the “stem” below the leaves. Vandas are actually more like vines, and more leaves/less stem is an indication of a well-grown plant.

[itzi]

Okay, noted. I think ill consider a small humidifier. I also wanted to know how bad these roots are. It was in a vase before, but left wet for too long, and the parts of the roots that were touching the vase seem to have gone brown. Does that mean the rest of the root below that part is useless? The brown sections are still fairly plump.

[Dusty Ol' Man]

Plump is good. The roots look fine to me, if a little thirsty. Follow Ray's advice on water and fertilizer.

[itzi]

Alright, I have some 20-20-20 coming in this week that im gonna soak it in once a week at 1/10th a teaspoon per gallon. I read a little on Nitrogen ppm and that should be 25 N ppm, which I think is fine.

I soaked it this morning at 10, and its 1pm right now and the roots are silvery. Should I be misting it too? I dont know if that really helps

	Mistking Looking for a misting system? Look no further. Automated misting systems from MistKing are used by multitude of plant enthusiasts and are perfect for Orchids. Systems feature run dry pumps, ZipDrip valve, adjustable black nozzles, per second control! Automatically mist one growing shelf or a greenhouse full of Orchids. See MistKing testimonials

[estación seca]

Vandas are very heavy feeders, more than most orchids. 25 ppm is homeopathic for them. Motes Orchids recommends 1 Tablespoon per gallon every 5th watering. Yes, that is far more than you would use on most orchids.

[itzi]

Alright, I'm just worried because of the damaged state of the roots, I dont want to overexpose them. Will take your advice though!

[estación seca]

The most important thing is thoroughly wetting the roots every day. It's not going to grow much without warm weather.

[itzi]

I found a better west-facing window in my house, It gets full direct sun from noon to 4, then shade from a tree after, which is the hottest point of the day. I think ill move it there, though it may need a humidifier cause its pretty dry in that room.

[itzi]

Originally Posted by estación seca

Vandas are very heavy feeders, more than most orchids. 25 ppm is homeopathic for them. Motes Orchids recommends 1 Tablespoon per gallon every 5th watering. Yes, that is far more than you would use on most orchids.

Is "every 5th watering" dependent on how often you water the vanda? I've been doing a 15 minute soak every morning, and I just want to be sure im not going to overdo it by following the rate you provided, which would be 1 tablespoon of fert per gallon every 5 days.