Vanda ustii

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Hausermann's Orchids would probably have Vanda cristata seedlings available at a reasonable price to buy multiples of.

[judith_arquette]

Thanks! I'll check it out
How much more challenging are seedlings?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

If they were hardened off and they are larger than 1" tall, they're not difficult.

They grow a bit differently than the adults though.

[judith_arquette]

Once I get the hang of the new plants I believe I'm going to take your suggestion. I think it would be a lot of fun and very rewarding, just don't want to bite off more than I can handle all at once. Great Idea Philip, thanks! I'll most likely seek your advice/guidance before I place any kind of order tho...flying blind here lol
what does "hardened off" mean?

[Fairorchids]

Seedlings of Vandaceous group do well with moderately bright light, and regular watering (do not let them go dry between waterings). They also appreciate regular feedings.

[judith_arquette]

Here it is and it's looking like I def have AWHILE before this grows enough to bloom. Good thing it's so cute lol. I'm really looking forward to watching this little bugger grow <3

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by judith_arquette

what does "hardened off" mean?

Sorry, I didn't catch this a while ago.

"Hardened off" means that the seedlings are conditioned to go from living in a sheltered environment, (usually where it is very humid), to a less ideal/sheltered environment that is closer to what they would get if they were out in the wild. In the case of orchid seedlings, we're talking about deflasking the seedlings and conditioning them to grow out of flask in the proper growing environment where they were meant to be grown in our corresponding growing areas. This acclimatization usually involves a lot of physiological changes that need to occur in the seedling in order for it to adjust to living outside a humid bottle that has plenty of nutrients at its disposal, which includes lignification, (where the plants harden and toughen up their physical structures).

The hardening off process is usually where the seedlings start to weed themselves out. Some do not make the adjustment to the outside world.

This is usually where you will start to see why orchids reproduce in such enormously large numbers. It is pretty close to what nature would do in the wild.

Just from the hardening off process alone, you will start to understand why orchids are really not all over the place in the wild.

Orchids are really playing a numbers game when it comes to survival.