Sunday 29 November 2015

Bloom event - Vanda no ID





It's a pity I don't have a name for this Vanda hybrid. I assume it is one of the Princess Mikasa hybrids, but I couldn't say for sure. This is one of the best performing Vanda I have, growing well and blooming regularly. I particularly like the colour (not quite so blue in real life as in the photo). The plant is not too big (Vanda can be rather bulky). I grow my Vanda in deep pots these days, though when I started growing Vanda quite a few years ago I grew them in glass vases. I had a lot of success growing them that way, but as my collection grew I found that it was very hard work keeping them watered as glass vases full of water are rather heavy and flowers are easily damaged. I now use deep pots with coarse bark chips. Results are mixed. It seems some plants adapt to it and some don't, these smaller hybrids (probably Ascocenda in fact, though the taxonomists have been buggering about with Vandaceous orchids and I don't always keep up with the latest names) adapting the best of all with roots right down to the bottom of the pot. I'm not giving up, though. I firmly believe that growing them bare root is not the right way to do it. Next experiment with them will be to use large aquatic net pots to allow even more air to the roots while still keeping them contained. I have two small plants (like real babies) that are growing away very nicely in 13cm aquatic pots. Time will tell, but they have exploded with new roots God knows how I'll get them out of these pots as the roots grow straight through, I'll have to just pot on pot and all ! 

P.S. I apologise for this post being centered, for some reason I can't alter it.

2 comments:

  1. Hi Kev, Have you considered grow stone? I have large hydroponic stone called Grow This 1, look it up.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi, thank you for your comment. I've never heard of grow stone, I'll check it out.

    ReplyDelete