Coconut fiber for Vanda's

[Ferns Daddy]

I was given a small Vanda Tessalata Black and blue,thats in a 2inch pot, the roots are growing in coconut fiber, is it ok to leave it that way and just keep it watered or should I re pot it with some thing else, this is the first Vanda so I want to make sure I do every thing to make it happy.

[Bud]

leave it like that for the meantime....let it get used to your environment; then next year as it gets bigger then you can alternate vase culture in the winter and in a basket in the summer(they would love the humidity outdoors in your area in the warm months under a bright shady tree)....I think your Vanda is a year old seedling....three more years and it will bloom for you.

[Ferns Daddy]

Thanks for the reply, I'll leave it alone until next year,
I'm not sure what you mean by vase culture, I'm still new to grown orchids

[Bud]

Here is a link to a sticky of a thread about vase culture:

Vandas in Glass Vases

[Ferns Daddy]

Bud, Thanks for the help, I've learned more in the last few day here than I could by searching the Internet when I should be doing other things

[Bud]

Welcome Aboard, FD!

I am glad you found us.

[BradGC]

I recently bought a vanda that was struggling a bit, it had been potted in a small plastic basket then that one placed inside a bigger basket and they had used coco fiber in between the baskets which is good for water retention but because of the size of vanda roots, it was struggling from the roots being too cramped. I felt that it kind of defeated the purpose of using a basket. These new plastic baskets pretty much never need to be repotted, only the wooden ones as they break down.

So to sum it up, cocofibre can be ok as long as it's very loose so that the roots can easily pass thru.

Good luck!

[Ferns Daddy]

I put my vanda in a plastic basket,There not much fiber in the basket there enough to hold the plant up right and the roots are growing thu the fiber, I can't get over how fast the roots grow, maybe I should have used a larger basket. if this does well I may get a few more vandas for my collection.
Thanks for the help

[BradGC]

Vandas are my favourite as well!

I've recently realised how much water is held inside the coco nuggets (chc - coconut husk chips). Which isn't too good for some orchids but it's great for vanda baskets as a bit of extra water retention but still lots of airflow.