Plants
Vanda Orchid
Vanda · Orchidaceae
The vanda is the most spectacular orchid in the trade: large, often blue-violet blooms with net-like patterning — and below them a free-hanging tuft of silvery aerial roots, with no pot or soil at all. Exactly this growth habit makes it the most demanding orchid for the home, because water and humidity have to come from you. We carry vandas as special individual pieces from our buying at the Veiling Rhein-Maas — commit to their care and you get flowers of a colour depth found nowhere else.
- Light
- Very bright, the brightest spot in the home; only shade against harsh midday sun behind glass.
- Watering
- Soak the roots several times a week or mist daily; let them dry completely in between.
- Care level
- Demanding
- Botanical
- Vanda
Vandas are true epiphytes: in nature they cling to branches with their roots and draw water and nutrients from rain, dew and humid air. That is why the trade grows them hanging from hooks or in glass vases without substrate — potting them in soil would finish them off, as the roots would rot.
The genus is famous for its blue: Vanda coerulea and its hybrids deliver what is probably the truest blue-violet in the orchid world, often with a checkerboard veining. There are also vivid pink, orange and yellow varieties; individual blooms reach up to ten centimetres and last several weeks on the plant.
Care revolves entirely around water: ideally the bare roots are misted daily with soft water, or bathed two to three times a week for 20 to 30 minutes in room-temperature water until they turn green. Afterwards they must dry off promptly — permanently wet roots rot just as reliably as parched ones shrivel.
For light the vanda is greedier than almost any other indoor orchid: it wants a very bright spot, tolerates morning and evening sun, and simply will not flower in dark corners. It also asks for year-round warmth of 20 to 28 degrees Celsius and the highest humidity you can offer — a bright bathroom with a window is often the best spot in the whole home.
The most common mistake besides potting it up is trimming the aerial roots because they look „untidy“. Every cut root costs the plant supply capacity. Healthy roots are silvery and turn green after watering; only mushy or hollow, dried-out strands are removed.
In floristry we like to use vanda blooms as soloists: a single spike in a tall glass vase is a complete decoration in itself, and individual flowers elevate bridal bouquets and table arrangements. Cut vanda blooms are among the most expensive and, at the same time, longest-lasting orchid flowers on the market.
Is Vanda Orchid toxic to children and pets?
- Children
- Non-toxic
- Cats
- Non-toxic
- Dogs
- Non-toxic
Like most orchids, the vanda is considered non-toxic to cats, dogs and people. Dangling aerial roots may tempt cats to play — which harms the plant more than the animal.
Overview: toxic & non-toxic plants for cats, dogs and children
Care
- 01Grow it without pot or soil — hanging, or in a tall glass vase with the roots left free.
- 02Bathe the roots two to three times a week for 20–30 minutes in room-temperature, soft water.
- 03The roots must be able to dry off completely between waterings.
- 04Place it very bright; morning and evening sun are welcome, only shade against harsh midday sun.
- 05Keep it warm all year (20–28 °C) and provide high humidity, for instance in a bright bathroom.
- 06Add weakly dosed orchid fertiliser to the soaking water every two weeks.
Frequently asked
- Why does the vanda have no soil?
- Because in nature it grows as an epiphyte in the tree canopy, its roots taking up water directly from rain and humid air. Planted in soil, the roots get too little air and rot. That is why a vanda is grown hanging or in an empty glass vase and regularly soaked or misted.
- How often do I need to water a vanda?
- As a rule of thumb: bathe the roots in room-temperature water for 20 to 30 minutes two to three times a week, and mist daily on top of that in summer and in dry heated air. Healthy roots turn green when watered. It is important that they can dry off completely afterwards.
- Is the vanda toxic to cats?
- No, like almost all orchids the vanda is considered non-toxic to cats, dogs and people. The free-hanging roots do make tempting cat toys, though — hang the plant out of reach and it will live longer.
- Why is my vanda not flowering?
- In almost every case the answer is light. A vanda needs the brightest spot in the home and often will not flower at all with ordinary windowsill light levels. Too little watering and missing fertiliser also hold blooms back. In a very bright, warm spot with regular care, a vanda can flower up to three times a year.