Can Vandas be potted?

[dannym4243]

I just received several Vandas and the roots are going everywhere (they are in baskets) is there any reason I can't pot them up? If so what kind of potting material should I use? I put 4 of them in glass vases to try that. Now the rest of them I would like to pot up.
Thanks
Danny

[tucker85]

How do people in your area grow vandas? Here in Florida we grow them in baskets with the roots hanging free and we usually water them once a day. I have read about growing vandas in a vase or a pot but I've never tried it. I would ask people at your orchid society meetings. Good luck.

[Bud]

You can pot vandas but make sure they have many holes for the roots to breathe...I use treefern cubes....some of my vandas in a vase have a mix of hydroton, coco chips, lava rocks and charcoal...I also have one vanda on S/H.
But I am in Manhattan and we dont have your humid atmosphere in California...if you dont have frost...just leave it alone on the basket...Florida, California and southern Texas can grow vandas bareroot or in a basket...I cant , we have bitter winters...so I learned to drill glass and some of them are in large glass vases

[ryrycochinco]

I grow mine in baskets with live Spanish Moss draped over the top. The moss helps the roots retain moisture and it looks nice

[RosieC]

I had one for about 18 months potted in large bark in a big pot. It seemed to work well but I had to be very careful to just dribble a small amount of water in every couple of days, rather than ever completely wetting the bark.

However I should point out that it died and I don't fully know why. I have a feeling it was tool cold and dark over a winter period when it was also flowering. However I can't rule out that it was growing it in bark that just wan't a long term solution. I really don't know. I intend to use a vase growing technique when I get another one.

[Bud]

Originally Posted by RosieC

I had one for about 18 months potted in large bark in a big pot. It seemed to work well but I had to be very careful to just dribble a small amount of water in every couple of days, rather than ever completely wetting the bark.

However I should point out that it died and I don't fully know why. I have a feeling it was tool cold and dark over a winter period when it was also flowering. However I can't rule out that it was growing it in bark that just wan't a long term solution. I really don't know. I intend to use a vase growing technique when I get another one.

It died because of the cold and darkness...vandas like bright light but not direct sun and warmth (below 50 is too cold for them for a long period unless theyre the Coerulea specie)a heater would have helped even if the bright sun was lessened. Vandas love lots of water and feed then often...they do not have a winter hybernation...so dont stop what youre doing...soak the bark every other day in winter and if its too hot and humid in summer only once a day soaking...bark would have been fine Rosie...the water will not stay stagnant and rot the roots.
Next time you own any vandacious orchids...do it on S/H method...
and warmth, lots of warmth

[dannym4243]

Bud are you saying that Vandas take well to S/H? That would be the answer to my original question "what to pot vandas in.
Thanks
Danny Medina

[RosieC]

I would be interested to know if S/H works for vandas as well.

I would have thought it would make it get even colder though in the winter. The evaporation from the lecca cools the root-zone and I have a problem with that in winter on my phals, I would expect a similar/worse problem for Vandas.

I know a few people in Europe successfully using the vase technique so I plan to try that next.

[stefpix]

I have Vanda tricolor (small, bought a seedling a year ago) potted in a netpot with long coconut fiber (strings) dries really fast yet lets some humidity be around the roots in dry winter days (central heating). I insert the net pot in a similar sized pot to retain more humidity yet allow some air circulation. it is the setup that works best for me

[smweaver]

Danny, they can be potted, but you do have to adjust your care for them compared to how they're traditionally grown (in empty wooden baskets). I have three species vandas in pots: V. merrillii, V. luzonica and V. coerulea. Of the three, V. merrillii seems to like being in the pot the most (or is, perhaps, more tolerant of it); I have two full-size adults and a couple of juvenile V. merrilliis, along with a few seedlings, and they're all doing fine potted. V. luzonica is doing well in a pot, but I had to play around with the mix before I found out what it liked (straight large-grade aliflor). Whatever you choose, a friendly word of advice is to keep the mix open--large-grade nuggets or chunks are more likely to satisfy the plant's mutual need for lots of water and lots of air around the roots. Good luck with your experiment!

Steve