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plantivorous

Special Vanda Orchid

18 years ago

Hi, i have a vanda plant that i bought from a very responsible orchid grower in ebay and its a vanda i have never seen before( they also have a green house here in orlando, fl which i visited a couple of time already) and my plant was doing great in the beginning. the next day once having the orchid home with me i saw that it had long roots i know that you should not cut off the roots of a vanda too short so i only cut one inch off. later on and now it has lost two pairs of leaves( 4 leaves in total) and the roots have turned very dry; even when i soak it in water it doesnt have that green anymore. Well the thing is i feel really frustrated and dissapointed because i didnt want my vanda to lose any leaves because they look nice with all the leaves intact and i am trying to make it grow new roots but it looks so hard to do so i have been waiting a while now.. i would appreciate any help available. i would like to buy a rooting hormone formula but i think i have heard that messes around with the plants hormones + growth so i would like to use something natural and organic. I dont know if its because i give it some of my tap water since it hasnt rained, maybe my water is too hard, etc? I appreciate the help, answers. thanks.

Comments (8)

  • 18 years ago

    Why cut the roots off at all? I wouldn't add insult to injury and try rooting hormones at this stage. Just let it recover. These plants need daily watering/heavy misting, if grown without medium. Check leaves for possibility of other problems as well, such as mites. If you don't detect anything more, wait for a show of new root growth. It may take a while.
    Ann

  • 18 years ago

    Not sure which grower you bought it from, but all locals that also sell on ebay are good growers, that I know of. Vandas do very well here in Florida, however they require a lot of moisture and sun. We have also had a very dry spring, so there is no supplemental rain to fall back on but should be misting it everyday, and not just a splash with a water hose but a good watering for about 15 minutes. They do not like the cold either and will loose a few leaves if the temps drop into the lower 50's but that has not been the case down here since March.

    When our normal rains come back in a few weeks the plant will comeback quickly, but dry roots and leaf drop is normally a dryness issue.

  • 18 years ago

    Plantivorus, which grower did you buy it from (what is their real business name, not the one on e-bay). Just a thought for the future, when my Vanda roots grow too long, I soak them in luke warm water for a while so the roots are nice & pliable & tie them into loose balls. Also you said that all the roots are very dry and do not turn green anymore, you are using tap water, do you have a water softener on the water source you are using? Even if it is an outside water valve, they are sometimes tied into the house water with water softener included.

    If you are interested in getting roots growing quickly (well at least as quickly as orchids like to do things) you can buy K-L-N liquid rooting hormone & soak the plant in the solution for 3 minutes. Since this is a Vanda & they like to have everything in excess, I would make the batch with an extra measure of the rooting hormone. I have used it with great success on all my plants (including vandaceous types). Do not be concerned with messing up the plants hormones, it will not bloom until it is able to get water and nutrients into its system. If you are concerned with the hormone affecting you, then just wear gloves for a day or two while handling the plant so that the residue has time to be washed away & evaporate. Good luck!!!

    -Ray-

  • 18 years ago

    Thank you all for the help, well i am not scared of getting the hormone formula on me, its because i have heard that it could mess up the growth pattern or growth habit of plants due to the hormones. And my vanda was doing great at first i dont know what might be the reason. I do have a water softner but i have not added the salt for it to make any residue. I do have a question though. Is it bad to grow vandas indoors because i had my vanda indoors and i do have the air conditioner on, i have seen vanda orchids inside of homes before hopefully its not because of that. Since i have noticed that my vanda has been losing the leaves and has had dry roots i have been soaking it in a bucket for 10-30 mins a day for now about 2 weeks, hopefully it will start making new root growth. i would appreciate any help on growing my vandas indoors like watering( what type of water) and feeding, etc. Thanks.

  • 18 years ago

    OK, so this is a joke? If you bought this and saw the plant at a local grower's, surely you didn't think it would like life indoors. Why did you wait until now to disclose that you are trying to grow it indoors and with air conditioning? I usually have a lot of patience, but your questions seem ludicrous.
    Throw it in the trash and buy something that will survive indoors. What a shame. So many people buy these plant with no knowledge of what they need to live.
    Ann

  • 18 years ago

    If you are interested in growing this plant in optimal conditions, I would think you need to move it outdoors. I am not a vanda grower, but I do know it needs plenty of light and warm, humid conditions to thrive. Indoors culture is very tough on these orchids. It will also be difficult to rebloom.

    jeanne

  • 18 years ago

    OH thanks much for the help Gardnergal; of course i am not stupid i might seem that i dont know much about vandas but i have other vandas that are doing great. I know of another forum and they have members from other places around the world there are even people in london growing vandas and how funny is that their weather isnt close to orlando, and they even grow them indoors. I am thinking that maybe since this is the only vanda that isnt doing that great its because i did have a trip right after i cutted off a inch off the roots( which i heard is good promotes latteral root growth) and maybe suffered at that point, i am pretty sure it will do great though. But i do appreciate the help though will appreciate more help. Thanks again.

  • 18 years ago

    Plantivorous,

    Of course Vandas can be grown in places other than south Florida. It's just that THAT location comes closest to providing them with everything they need to be happy with the least effort from People. Growing them elsewhere means being willing to supplement whatever to creat blinding light, insufferable humidity, and inhuman heat, plus daily water and fertilizer. Growers who don't want to be a slave to their plants only to watch them slowly decline anyway pick plants that are less challenging. My vanda lives outside thru the summer (NE GA) and moves inside for the winter. The first winter it lived in the South facing Bay window and traveled to the shower with me every morning. It's in a hanging basket and the plant plus roots were about 4 feet. After replacing the Bay window last year (Wonder why it rotted out? Couldn't have anything to do with the 75 orchids in it!) I downsized my collection enuff to get them in the GH (8x10). If it helps any, blue Vandas are supposed to be more tolerant of occasional cooler temperatures. To successfully grow orchids, you have to provide them with conditions they like. Generally, forcing them to live in places you like will not help them flourish. That's why most South Florida folks don't grow cymbidiums. Here I have both of them.

    Sherlene

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