Vanda vietnamica

[MrHappyRotter]

Vanda vietnamica also known as Christensonia vietnamica

Interesting that IOSPE doesn't have this listed as fragrant. The fragrance was one of the top of many reasons why I purchased this plant. It's not a super powerful scent, but it's very pleasant. Depending on my mood and the plant's mood, it reminds me of either orange or strawberry pez candy. Very simple, delicate, sweet and fruity smell.

This is also my only Vanda. Vanda and close allies have a reputation of needing a lot of warmth, high humidity, and a lot of light. Many of the common hybrids aren't really good candidates for growing indoors, under T8 lights, on metal shelves.

Vanda vietnamica seems to break all those perceptions. I wouldn't exactly call this a mini, but it's certainly a dwarf sized plant, and one of the smaller members of the genus Vanda.

It really doesn't seem to need much more light than a Phalaenopsis to grow well and bloom. In fact, for most of the time I've had it, it's been growing in a basket hanging by the side of the light stand. It has multiple Tillandsia companions, and almost no potting media other than what's left down in the tiny 2" pot I bought it in. The Tillandsias shade the leaves a bit as well.

As far as water goes, I splash it with water about twice a week, dunk and soak it at least once a month, and when I have time or don't forget, I mist it in the morning. I don't use fertilizers very heavily on any of my plants, and this Vanda isn't an exception. It probably does get slightly more fertilizer than the Phrags, because I periodically cycle in a small amount of fertilizer into the bottle I spray with to ensure the Tillandsias are fed well, meaning the Vanda gets some of that as well as the normal fertilizer I add when I water.

I moved it outside for a short time in the summer because I thought it wasn't getting enough light, since it didn't bloom in the spring. But, as it turns out, its siblings at the vendor didn't bloom until this Fall as well, so I'm guessing this species is a fall bloomer.

The flowers are nice sized, and I like the color of them. The plant originally started producing 2 spikes, and as the buds started becoming noticeable, I moved it back indoors to protect it from pests and weather trauma. Unfortunately, after doing that one of the spikes aborted, presumably from the cooler temps and lower humidity indoors. However, the second spike continued to develop nicely, and I got a couple flowers out of the deal.