strange phal + small Vanda alliance... no tags - hints?

[stefpix]

I bought one small orchid of the Vanda alliance - there was no tag the guy that sold it to me for 5 $ told me it had flowered already - and I could still se e the stem - he had no idea what the flowers were like [his wife, the orchid "person" was not there. Anyway I want to grow it in this small Ikea vase I got for a dollar that seems perfect size

Picasa Web Albums - stefanog - dendrobiums etc

Picasa Web Albums - stefanog - dendrobiums etc

Picasa Web Albums - stefanog - dendrobiums etc

got this Phal for a dollar a few weeks ago at Lowes. No tag. What Phal is it with the flower stem shooting up from the crown? ususally I see stems starting from one side of the base, just above the roots. scroll down to last photo.
Picasa Web Albums - stefanog - dendrobiums etc

Picasa Web Albums - stefanog - dendrobiums etc
table style="width:auto;"><tr><td><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/NsSFmsulecFZqFqhXIp3_w?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_DCun1FO0WLM/SosTgXJ0xgI/AAAAAAAASOw/uCh44Fte0Y0/s400/DSC_7818.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right">From <a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/stefpix/DendrobiumsEtc?feat=embedwebsite">dendrobiums etc</a></td></tr></table>

<table style="width:auto;"><tr><td><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/CGXJJDsFG1eQVGPSl_kfZg?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_DCun1FO0WLM/SosTahA7oXI/AAAAAAAASOo/Y4w2AnixC38/s400/DSC_7816.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right">From <a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/stefpix/DendrobiumsEtc?feat=embedwebsite">dendrobiums etc</a></td></tr></table>

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Unless your Phal is in bloom no one knows what it is.

The Vanda is different. There're only a few Vandas that bloom at that size. It could be Vanda parviflora or Vanda coerulescens. If it isn't it's probably an Ascocentrum or a Neofinetia.

Vanda coerulescens: http://www.orchidspecies.com/vandacoerulescens.htm
Vanda parviflora: http://www.orchidspecies.com/vparviflora.htm

Neofinetia falcata: http://www.orchidspecies.com/neofinetiafalcata.htm

Unless somebody tells you otherwise, I don't suggest growing the Vanda in water like that.

[stefpix]

I was wondering if it is an Ascocentrum or Rhyncostilis - still Vanda alliance.

I do not want to grow it in water - just soak it half hour weekly or so - I read threads about Vandas in glass vased. Water weekly / spray daily - keep vase empty or just little water at the bottom for humidity

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Not sure about vase culture as I don't do it myself.

I pot mine in terra cotta pots with large wood chips and some sparse bits of moss for moisture retention.

They grow fine.

I used to grow on trees here as well (as in like how they would grow in the wild). Works like a charm if you can get to them. I recently took mine off the trees because I was getting lazy and couldn't get to them (I've got a big yard), and they were getting sun burnt.

Other people here have grown in vase, maybe they can say something about it.

Now, luckily there is also another person here who also grows Vandas in pots, so maybe that person will chime in.

As for whether it's an Ascocenda or a Rhynchostylis. I don't know. But I think it would most likely be an Ascocenda over a Rhynchostylis if it isn't a Vanda.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Have you tried contacting the seller again?

[stefpix]

the seller was clueless - had all these potted orchid sitting in water in the humidity tray - probably best described as "flooded swamp tray". He has a decent sized Potinara that I am tempted - he asked 10 $ but well i would get it for 5.
he referred to Vanda as "Banda" or something...
I am in Brooklyn and I wanted to try a Vanda.
People on Gardenweb discouraged me because I am in the US NE... but here I saw this thread with this guy that grows Vandas in vases on a windowsill in the UK and they flower. It was a really long thread and I found people in this forum are a bit more daring and supportive. So anyway I got a Renanthera from Olympicorchids for $3 but it is really a tiny seedling and only one root is good. Then I ordered 2 small Vandas pachara for $3.80 from ROC. Anyway I thought I had enough but I saw this one today and for 5$ i thought it could be worth trying and fits the Ikea vase I had.
I also got a nice strawberry [seneca] plant for $1 and a very nice blooming pansy for 50 cents... so 7 bucks after tax for 3 nice plants... seems good to me.
Anyway could it be a Rhyncostilis?

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

I think the people on GardenWeb discouraged you because of lighting issues. Vandas need a lot of light.

If you can supplement with some compact flourescent bulbs then you don't need to worry about lighting.

I said all I can without knowing what the flowers look like. I'm sorry. Like I said, if it were truly a Vanda species, then it'd most likely be the two I mentioned based on what I see in the pics. However, if they're clueless about what they have, assuming that it's even a Vanda species at all, I suppose it's the easier species to find, Vanda parviflora.

Oak Hills Garden sells Vanda seedlings for an affordable price and you'll know exactly what you're getting. Quality is not too bad either.

The roots on your Vanda look pretty bad, but I'm sure there're a couple good ones in there.

[stefpix]

yeah - they told me the plant had two leaves - so probably is recouperating -
i will try... I have south exposure windows and i can supplement with 2 shoplights and have a few 23 W CFL on a work clamp lamp i can put quite close... If they bloomed in the UK they can bloom here - also this one has a dry flower spike... and looks better than the Phals i rescued from Lowes.
will try and see the vase - and i can keep it outside when hot and sunny.

[jkofferdahl]

I'm afraid that there's bad news on the Phal. The reason that the spike is centered rather than coming from the side is that the plant has what is called a "terminal" spike; in other words the plant isn't going to grow any new leaves again, nor
is it going to bloom again. You can try to keep it healthy and alive in hopes that it will grow a basal keiki, essentially cloning itself. If it doesn't, then the plant is just fated to eventually wither away.

Sorry to bear the bad news.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

The probability that your plant is a Rhynchostylis is not very high. Rhynchostylis gigantea is the more commonly sold Rhynchostylis, and this plant has pendulous spikes with wider leaves and pronounced veins. Rhynchostylis retusa is a smaller plant with thinner leaves, but the spikes are also pendulous. The only Rhynchostylis that can bloom at a small size, but has upright spikes is Rhynchostylis coelestis. However Rhynchostylis coelestis is a rarer plant. I don't think that's the plant the sellers would carry.

Your plant has upright growing flower spikes.