Ascocenda Princess Mikasa culture

[amulchandra]

Hi all,

I have been looking for a Vanda orchid for a long time and got an Ascocenda princess mikasa today.
Can any one of the experts here help me in understanding what kind of culture it requires?
Did I put myself in big trouble as I am still a newbie?

Thank you

Amul

[kmarch]

Originally Posted by amulchandra

Ascocenda princess mikasa

Hi Amul and welcome to the forum. For starters, the names of orchid hybrids are capitalized just like a person's name, so: Ascocenda Princess Mikasa. If you have not already done so, read the vanda culture notes hereon the forum or the vanda culture sheet found at American Orchid Society. These will tell you how much light, water and what temperatures your orchid wants. After you're read them let us know if you have questions.

[Nugget]

Ascda Princess Mikasa loves to grow & flower. If its growing in a basket with the roots going everywhere thats fine. Don't let it get a chill. If you can also keep it in very strong light without burning it, it will flower 2 or 3 times a year. Use a weak strength fertilizer every time you water, it will respond very well.

[amulchandra]

Thank you kmarch for correcting me about capitalization.

Thank you Nugget for your advise.

I read the culture notes but I am trying to understand how to grow it in San Diego's weather conditions.

Is it OK if I put it along with my Cymbidiums? Do the Vanda's require as much light as Cymbidiums. I am confused about all this low,medium and high light levels. My Phals bloom for me. One of my Cymbidium has two spikes.
So I am trying to understand the culture in terms of the conditions I am successful with, with my existing orchids.

The Vanda is in a basket and has very long roots hanging all over the place. The guy at the nursery told me to water it once a day. Is it too less?

Hope you understand what I am trying to say.

Thank you very much

Amul

[Mira-Claude]

My Vandas have direct light from sun's up t about noon or so. I dunk them in a sink full of water for 30 mins to an hour every day and they are doing fine. The two that seemed to like more humidity got their basket filled with sphag. One is currently flowering so I guess I'm doing something right! ^^

[amulchandra]

Thank you Mira-Claude.

I will try to find what makes mine happy without killing them.


Amul

[kmarch]

Originally Posted by amulchandra

I read the culture notes but I am trying to understand how to grow it in San Diego's weather conditions.

An orchids cultural needs do not change depending on where in the workd you're growing it. It still needs what it needs, the basics of which are outlined in the culture sheets. Are you growing it outside? If so you'll need to take it in in the autumn/winter. If you look at those culture notes you'll see Ascocendas are intermediate to warm growers and that means 55+F night time lows.

Originally Posted by amulchandra

Is it OK if I put it along with my Cymbidiums? Do the Vanda's require as much light as Cymbidiums.

Read a good culture sheet for cymbidiums and compare the cultural requirements of the two. You'll see there's one big difference between cymbidiums and vandas: temperatures. Cymbidiums want a cool-cold winter in order to flower. Vandas are intermediate to warm growers not cool to cold. You might be able to grow them in the same location in the spring/summer, perhaps even early autumn, but they'll need to be treated differently in the winter.

Originally Posted by amulchandra

I am confused about all this low,medium and high light levels.

In that case you need to go back to the basics. The different light levels are fundamental to orchid growing. Get yourself a good beginners orchid book like Ortho's All About Orchids. There is an excellent chapter in there on light levels.

Originally Posted by amulchandra

The Vanda is in a basket and has very long roots hanging all over the place. The guy at the nursery told me to water it once a day. Is it too less?

Vandas grow in areas where there is a lot of humidity/mist/moisture. Once a day may be ok if it is humid, but more frequent watering may be necessary if it is hot/dry/low humidity.

[amulchandra]

Thank you very much kmarch for a very detailed reply.

I will go through the culture sheets as you suggested.

Amul

[Mira-Claude]

This culture sheet for vandaceous is a bit easier to understand yet the main facts are there. Maybe you'll find it, like I do, easier to understand and follow!

http://www.cloudsorchids.com/culture/vandaceous.htm

[amulchandra]

Thank you Mira-Claude. I read the culture sheet and it was very easy to understand. I am planning to place it outdoors where it is going to get light from morning 8 to afternoon 12.I am going to water it twice a day.

I will update you all how it is doing. I acquired one more NOID vanda yesterday.

Thank you very much

Amul

[Mira-Claude]

It's a pleasure! ^^

[amulchandra]

My Ascocenda Princess Mikasa has a flower spike coming up. Yay... I am so excited. I think I must be doing something right.

I hung it outside in an east facing patio where it gets morning sun. It is bare root to so I watered the roots once a day.

Thank you

Amul

[Mira-Claude]

Keep it going then!

[coeruleo]

i have wanted a pricess mikasa blue like forever!! so having found a seller online, i have ordered 2, and am now not so patiently waiting for them to arrive in the mail. it's really killing me! i live in southern california... where cymbidiums do really well outdoors year round. princess mikasas have a triple hit of vanda coerulea i think, and that is a cool growing himalayan vanda. it supposedly can live outdoors here too... VC is the pollen parent, and on the other side there are a couple coerulea ancestors as well. supposedly princess mikasa is not as cold tolerant, but close to a coerulea. i plan on keeping mine outside unless there is danger of frost. cool weather should help it proiduce spikes.

there is a lot of misinformation on the web about this orchid. i see people saying it is a hybrid of 2 yellow flowered vanda types and needs a tropical climate... but it is not, it has blue parents. and blue usually traces back to coerulea.

i have another ascocenda, no ID that i keep outside most of the year, and it flowers pretty much non-stop. i want to cut it back (too leggy) and repot it, but it has started flowering again. here in cali you cannot really do the bare root treatment, they will dessicate unless you water a few times a day. the air is just too dry, so i use medium bark, water once or twice a week heavily, and spray often with a spray bottle. i've had the ascocenda something like 12 years or so and it blooms 3 times a year. not sure why it took me this long to look into getting more ascos!