How to grow vanilla Orchid? The traditional vanilla bean pods used to make all of your favorite sweets are produced by vanilla orchids. the vanilla flavor of your morning latte, birthday cake, and ice cream? It originated in an orchid plant.
The vanilla orchid, like many other orchids, is a tropical plant that needs warmth and humidity to survive. The vanilla orchid is an epiphyte that grows alongside host trees in the tropics and absorbs nutrients from the atmosphere. Each long, spindly vine can produce hundreds of flowers and numerous vanilla bean pods under ideal conditions.
As a houseplant, the vanilla orchid is also grown. Since your orchid needs a carefully regulated climate to flower and grow its prized bean pods, it’s crucial to provide the ideal conditions for it.
The vanilla orchid is a difficult plant for beginners, but it is the ideal orchid for enthusiasts who enjoy a challenge. Growers who reside in a region without frost or who have access to a greenhouse are in a better position.
To help you enjoy getting the plant into bloom and perhaps even harvest some of your very own vanilla, we’ve listed the basic requirements of the vanilla bean orchid below.
How to grow vanilla Orchid
Light
Although your vanilla bean orchid enjoys bright light, direct sunlight can cause it to burn. Keep your orchid in a bright but partially shaded area for the best results.
Professional Hint: Growing a vanilla orchid in a greenhouse is a popular option because of its light and humidity requirements. A south-facing room with lots of light is ideal for growing vanilla orchids.
Substrate
Put your vanilla orchid in a growing mixture of fir bark, peat, or sphagnum moss for the best results. The mixture will offer good drainage, which is essential for maintaining the health of your vanilla orchid.
Professional Hint: Vanilla orchids can reach lengths of 20 to 30 feet when grown in greenhouse environments. Your orchid should be able to reach a height of a few feet indoors, so make sure to give it a stake or trellis to climb.
Water
When your vanilla bean orchid’s potting soil is almost dry, water it. When watering, make sure to thoroughly hydrate the plant until water begins to drain from the drainage holes in the pot.
Between waterings, let the potting mix slightly dry out to prevent root rot and deter pests.
Professional Advice: Put your orchid over a humidity tray in addition to developing a good water routine. Your orchid will luxuriate in the humid air as the water from the humidity tray evaporates.
Temperature
Vanilla orchids require warm daytime temperatures and a little bit cooler nighttime temperatures. During regular daytime hours, try to maintain your orchid’s environment between 80 and 95 degrees Fahrenheit. At night, temperatures between 60 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit are ideal.
The plant will quickly perish in cold temperatures because vanilla orchids are not frost-tolerant.
Professional Hint: Tropical-like environments are ideal for vanilla orchid growth. Frequently mist your plant and use a hygrometer to achieve a humidity level of 80% around it to keep it moist.
Propagation
In a few simple steps, you can propagate your vanilla bean orchid.
Select a vine first before cutting it. Choose a vine segment that has six or more growing nodes on it. To give yourself plenty of room to fit the cutting into a new pot, remove the two lowest leaves from it.
After that, insert the new vine into a tiny orchid pot that has been filled with potting soil. Around the base of the cutting, tightly pack the medium.
Put a stake into the pot for the plant, then tie the cutting to the stake.
Keep the growing medium damp for a few weeks to finish. When the orchid starts to vine, you can stop watering it and train the vine on a bigger trellis.
Professional Hint: Your vanilla orchid’s delicate vines. Be careful not to handle your plant too roughly because the vine could break if you do.
Disease
Vanilla bean orchids are prone to fungus infections and root rot. Avoiding leaving stagnant water on your plant’s leaves or in its potting mix is the best way to stop both root and fungal rot.
Brown spots, wilting stems, dry leaf tips, mushy roots, or yellowing leaves are typical symptoms of the disease. If your vanilla orchid displays any of these symptoms, cut and remove any affected areas.
Maintaining your vanilla orchid in a well-ventilated area will help to prevent fungal growth and root rot.
Professional Hint: We advise using our Root Rot Treatment to prevent brown spots and leaf drops on your orchid.
Harvest
Even so, the plant needs ideal conditions in order to sprout pods, which takes at least three years. It’s time to harvest when your vanilla orchid begins to sprout thin green bean pods.
Vanilla beans require a lot of labor-intensive curing. The bean pods go through a sweating and drying process every day for six weeks. The bean pods are covered with a blanket each night to promote condensation. The bean pods are exposed to the sun or heated lamps during the day. The shriveled pods are then stored in airtight containers and sold at premium prices after being kept in a dark, dry place for three months.
Professional Advice: If you’re fortunate enough to have a sprouting vanilla bean, wait to harvest it until the bean pods are about 6 inches long. Because bean pods will shrink and shrivel a little during processing, harvesting small or short bean pods will result in a less impressive vanilla bean.
Fertilizer
To keep your vanilla orchid strong, healthy, and thriving, fertilize it frequently. Although a regular feeding schedule is advised, avoid using harsh fertilizers as they can easily harm your orchid’s delicate root system.
Professional Advice: To feed all of your orchid plants, we suggest using our simple-to-apply Premium Orchid Food. Our fertilizer doesn’t need to be mixed or measured because it is designed to give your orchids the right nutrients. Watch those blooms explode by simply spraying!
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