Bloom Event - Big Giant Vanda

Its taken me ages to get around to writing about this Vanda. It was given to me a few years ago, along with a few other bits and pieces. Unbelievably, it doesn't have a name. It is quite different from the other big blue Vanda I grow, with flatter flowers, and the V. coerulea trait of lateral petals twisting to the horizontal being almost entirely absent from this plant. It was quite a big plant when it was given to me at a couple of feet tall, but it has almost doubled in size since then. I know exactly how much it has grown since I got it because not long after it entered my care I had a bit of a scare that it had got crown rot. It hadn't, but the leaves that were emerging from the crown at that time were damaged, and they are still present.

The blue colour and the tessellations are both outstanding. This one is much bluer than V. blue magic, although the flowers are marginally smaller. They are more than made up for in quantity, though, with this spike bearing 14 flowers. There would have been more, but the tip blasted, probably because it is quite windy at the top of the room it grows in. Still, its an impressive show, and I think there would have only been one extra flower if it hadn't.

Yes, I know it would have made a better photo against a black background as I do for more normal sized orchids, but this one was just too awkward. Still, you get the general idea. I've thought before that a decent photo of this in full bloom would make a nice base for a tattoo design. It is quite rare to see Vanda this sort of size, so I'm quite proud of this plant although I have to say that some of my other Vanda are growing quite quickly, too.  Vanda do have a (not entirely unfounded) reputation of being difficult to grow, and I have had rather mixed experiences with them in the past. I think I have it fairly sussed now, though. The first point to bear in mind is that Vanda like warm temperatures (yes, even hybrids of the cooler growing V. coerulea), and bright light all year round. This is obviously a problem for UK growers in winter, and the plants respond to this by going into semi-dormancy. They stop producing new leaves and the root tips cover over with velamen. This needn't cause too many problems provided watering is reduced accordingly but it is hard to balance plants being kept dry enough to prevent root rot and damp enough to stop them drying out (which they also don't like).

You can see the plant clearly doesn't mind being grown in a pot (which is starting to look decidedly small for the size of the plant). You can also just about see the couple of shorter leaves about halfway up the plant that show how big it was when I got it. Vanda grow quicker than you might imagine. I definitely think the key to getting them performing properly is keeping them growing through the winter, which means growing under lights in the UK. They certainly bloom much more often that way. I have far less Vanda than I used to, but there is nearly always a couple in bloom, summer or winter.

The other thing to not about Vanda is that once they are upset, it takes them ages to settle down again, and many plants are lost during this time. The key is definitely even conditions. Remember they come from areas that don't have seasons as we do, so they don't respond well to variations in temperature and light. I find that they will take quite a lot of water while they are growing, but are very intolerant of wet conditions. Pond pots seem to work well, but I struggle to find them the right shape to grow anything bigger than a modest sized plant.

Bloom event - Phalaenopsis Diamond King and a No ID

I'm really getting my money's worth out of my Phalaenopsis this year, although I suspect my audience might be getting rather bored of them. I'm hoping I grow enough interesting ones to keep everyone interested. In the meantime, here I present a couple of fairly generic ones that are in bloom for me. They might be uninspiring to a lot of orchid growers, but I have a certain respect for them. The first for today is another one of those British grown ones called Diamond King. You'd expect a beautiful crisp white with a name like that, wouldn't you? Wrong !

I like the markings on the lower sepals. I guess there is some Phalaenopsis stuartiana buried in there somewhere. This hybrid is a robust grower and always flowers well.

I think its fair to say this one will need repotting once it has done blooming as there are a lot of roots outside the pot now. This isn't a problem in itself, but the potting medium will need changing as this is one of the last ones from that batch that I haven't done yet.

There isn't a lot more to say about this one, really, that I haven't said elsewhere about one of the others. Pretty though, isn't it? Second on the list today is a no ID that I bought in IKEA a few years ago.

This is a strong grower and a good bloomer (aren't they all?). The flowers are a decent size, bigger than Diamond King pictured above, and a quite unique salmon colour that isn't seen around often. There is never a huge amount of buds on the spike, but enough to put on a show. This particular plant actually got crown rot not long after I got it. This is the only plant I have ever had that happen with. You might ask how come I still have the plant. Well it turns out that provided the rot doesn't spread down the stem of the plant, there is a good chance the plant will just produce a side growth and continue to grow. Make sure the crown is dry, and sprinkle some cinnamon in it to help keep further diseases out. This plant sat there for several months not doing anything at all but eventually a keiki developed from the base of the stem and has now grown to the size of the original plant.

All the original leaves from the mother plant have now fallen but you can still just about make out where the original crown rotted and a side growth took over. You can also clearly see that the plant has bloomed at least four times before this stem emerged. Once again, I will need to repot this before long as the original growing medium is surely breaking down by now.

Bloom Event - NoID Phalaenopsis

I seem to be posting rather a lot just recently, but there is quite a lot to keep up on, and I don't want to fall behind as this is meant as an orchid journal for me, the author, as much as for you lovely readers. There are already other orchids in spike waiting in the wings and just starting to open buds, so I don't want to miss them out.

The Phalaenopsis season continues apace. For this post I have grouped together the Phalaenopsis I have rescued from garden centres (quite often very cheaply and with no idea whatsoever of what flowers I might be expecting). Part of the reason I like to occasionally rescue Phalaenopsis is that they make wonderful gifts once I get them back to a good state of health and into flower. You could call it my own craft project if you like. After all, if I actually made you something, it would look like a two year old had done it. No word of a lie.

At any rate, here are a few photos of stuff that is in bloom, Phalaenopsis wise.

I have actually taken photos of the plants themselves as well, more for my own records than anything else.

Notice on the white, the bottom leaves are turning yellow in their 'little Autumn'; nothing to worry about, perfectly natural when the plants are blooming. Notice also that the flower colour seems to have influence over the overall colour of the plant. Plants that have pink or purple flowers seem to produce darker foliage, often with purple on the leaf undersides. Not always, of course; I refer you to the last post on Phalaenopsis Nemo which has quite pale foliage for the colour of the flowers.