Considering Taking the Risk of De-Basketing my Vanda...

[Lorraine]

Hi Kateana,

I have several vandas and some are in baskets and some hanging on a metal stake. I have found that removing a vanda from any type basket plastic or wood really sets the vanda back a lot. I lost a really nice one because I removed it from a plastic basket. Should have just set it into a wood basket and secured it to the bottom. If my guys are in a wood basket they send out roots and attach to the wood and on the really hot days there is some moisture for them, also some chunks of charcoal are in the baskets. They also will have roots grow and hang down throught the bottom and sides of the basket. Your pictures look similar to some of my younger guys and if you leave them alone they will reward you. I will send you pictures if you want to know how to attach them as they grow larger and need support. Mine grow outside and get a regular fertilizing every week and since it's been really cold every other week. Watered every other day. When warmer 65 and above, watered every day. I would let your baskets alone and when they start to fall apart let mother nature help you clean them off. Best advice is use this one as a learning curve and do the next ones differently. Hope this helps. PS. one of my guys sends out roots only sideways so I mounted it on a palm tree. It is now my tree hugger

[Kateana]

Thankyou for your comment Lorraine! No matter which way I would take her out of the basket it would be more than difficult. I may just keep it there. I tend to stick to the Catt Alliance of chids, they do extremely well with me, but like I said, I adore the Vandas...perhaps I'll build a collection slowly. Verrryy slowly.

[Kateana]

Pictures would be great, by the way!
Thankyou!

[Weebl]

Good suggestions here, as for de-assembling the basket: bend the metal pins at each corner, so that you can pull them out and get to play Jenga with the Vanda. It's quite easy to remove even the happiest of Vandas this way.

Vanda tricolor is also a very easy vanda to grow, and is quite temperature tolerate like coreulea. Tricolor has the added benefit of being a semi-terrestrial in nature, and will grow quite happily in a pot of bark and doesn't mind the breakdown over time as it makes new roots accustomed to this type of environment. I once got a very large tricolor, I'm talking 3 feet high, in a 14" pot that had just a bark mix in it. Despite being a couple years old and the mix was breaking down, when I removed it to look at the root system I was astonished to see that in the bottom of the pot, with all the barky mush, there were a ton of happy, healthy roots.

Good luck with the trials!

[Kateana]

Thankyou for your input as well! The good luck wishes are much appreciated.

[Lorraine]

Ok, here goes with the pictures.

The ones I have on a wire stake, I made a curve on the botton to set the bottom of vanda in and secured. If in the basket there is a stake in the middle sitting on top of the bottom slat and secured tightly in place and secured at the top of the hanger. Then the vanda is secured in place. The vanda is tight and cannot wobble al all. Tight is the name of the game. I do have some chunks of charcoal in several baskets, and they seem to like it. Hope this helps. A friend who has grown vandas and ascocendas for a long time show me ho to do it this way and I have had more success.

[Don Perusse]

I don't know where in Fl. you guys/gals live but I am in SW Ga. just 35 mi. north of Tallahassee and I have not trouble growing Vandaeous Family. I have about 30 in all, fm. Neos., Mokara, Ascda., Asctm., Vanda, Semi-trete, Rhyncho. and a couple other crosses. Like Lorraine I use wood, plastic and some just hang on a wire (those 3 or 4' beauties). If in a basket I do use charcoal only. I grow in shade house outside in summer and a poly greenhouse in winter where I keep the greenhouse no lower than 50 degrees. Tho it has gotten down to 45 on a couple of occasions without loosing any. Good luck with yours and keep trying they are beauties to say the least!