Vanda coerulescens 2014

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Ever since I got this Vanda, it has reliably sent out spikes every year in late spring/early summer.

I love this species.

Fragrant too. Smells like grape candy to me.

Only 1 spike this year.

[Gerben1998]

Beautiful! How do you care for this orchid?

Gerben

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

It is temperature tolerant (36 F - 110 F).

Grow under bright indirect light.

I grow it in a clear plastic pot with large grade bark and water year round. Watering is more frequent during the spring/summer. Water is reduced during the fall/winter.

During the fall/winter, I can water twice a week and it'll be fine.

Keep in moderate humdiity (60% - 70%).

Mine is grown outdoors all year round.

[Gerben1998]

Thx!!
Is 36°F not to cold??

Gerben

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

No. 36 F is not too cold for this orchid. There are no ill effects from this. It actually can grow colder, but I wouldn't try it out. 36 F is the lowest I feel comfortable growing this orchid in.

[smweaver]

Those are fantastic blooms. I like your description of the fragrance too. And being able to adapt to such a wide temperature range, it's a shame this species isn't seen more often. It would seem to have many good qualities to recommend it to any hobbyist.

[WhiteRabbit]

Fabulous!

I've been wanting one of these- Seeing your photos has increased that

[Leafmite]

What a great one, Philip! The blooms are just beautiful!
I had this one for many years until one of our dogs shredded it to bits.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by Leafmite

What a great one, Philip! The blooms are just beautiful!
I had this one for many years until one of our dogs shredded it to bits.

That's unfortunate. :/

I'm sure there are plenty of opportunities to get one later in the future.

They're making their way here - slowly.

Originally Posted by smweaver

Those are fantastic blooms. I like your description of the fragrance too. And being able to adapt to such a wide temperature range, it's a shame this species isn't seen more often. It would seem to have many good qualities to recommend it to any hobbyist.

To be honest, it's a shame many species Vandas aren't more available. I think they have a lot to offer any hobbyist just as they are.

Speaking particularly of Vanda coerulescens, it is an awesome plant! They are small, so they don't take up much space. Mine is currently about 7" tall, with a leaf span of about 10" across. Each flower is only 2 cm tall by 2 cm wide. When they're in bloom, they put on a show. Like I said, this year, there's only 1 spike. The previous years, 2 - 3 spikes were a common sight. Each of the larger spikes probably had anywhere between 12 - 16 flowers, maybe more. Occasionally a smaller spike would have about 8 flowers.

This spike pictured here measured to be about 8.5" long, so it's a pretty good sized spike.

The colors of the flowers in the pic are pretty true to the colors found on the flowers themselves. So, for anyone who is wondering, the lip is really that blue.

I also love their temperature tolerance. I was at one point a bit worried that it would not be able to handle the SoCal heat, but this guy came through with flying colors.

[nikkik]

Very pretty!