Flowers A to Z - Vanda Orchid

Vanda Orchid

Botanical Name :	Vanda spp.
Common Name :	Vanda Orchid
Product Use :	Cut Flower
Pronunciation :	VAN-da
Family Roots :	Member of the Orchidaceae (orchid family). Native to Asia and Malaysia. Common relatives include Cymbidium, Oncidium, Paphiopedilum and Cattleya.
Personality :	Flowers flat, 2-4 inches across, lip reduced, in groups of up to 15 flowers on a stem. Stems leafless, 24-32 inches long. Plant is an epiphyte, classed as a monocotyledon, leaves mostly parallel veined. Some flower fragrance.
Availability :	Year-round.
Flower Color :	Blue, orange, yellow, pink and white, often spotted.
Decorative Life :	7-14 days.
Ethylene Sensitivity :	High
Ethylene Comments :	Treat with an anti-ethylene product.
Post Harvest Care Opportunities :	Recut stems under water and place into a fresh flower food solution or water as flower foods seemingly offer few benefits. To reduce flower fading during transport, flowers can be held for 2-3 days under low oxygen (1.0-2.5%) and high carbon dioxide (1.5-2.0%) before shipment and shipped using normal procedures. Chilling sensitive, avoid damaging the pollen cap as this begins the rapid color loss and wilting processes.
Storage Specifics :	They can be stored at 55F for 5 days with no loss in quality but flower life is reduced by about 1/3 if stored for 10 days.
Preharvest & Harvest Factors:	Has a very high respiration rate compared to most other flowers and plants used by florists.
Tidbits :	Vanda coerulea has blue flowers, hybrids of V. teres and V. tricolor are white or yellow-orange, variety called 'Miss Joaquim' is lavender with a blue center. Orchids have long been highly sought after, probably for the unusual beauty of their design. Orchid hunters in the nineteenth century collected them by the ton, and chopped down as many as four thousand trees at one time for the Orchids growing on them. As an epiphyte, it is a plant in its native habitat that grows upon other plants but is not parasitic. It obtains its moisture from air. Vanda is an Indian name for this genus. Chilling injury or ethylene damage appears as translucent or dried patches on petals and sepals. One famous vanda is V. coerules (Blue Orchid) that comes from Northern India. Also, many Vanda orchids have been reclassified into other genera such as V. teres to Papilionanthe teres, a flower used extensively in the floral trade. See More at Hoogasian Flowers A to Z: http://www.hoogasian.com/FlowersAtoZ.html