The Tropical Fruit Forum

Tropical Fruit => Tropical Fruit Discussion => Topic started by: Midwestfruitjungle on October 08, 2022, 09:59:47 AM

Title: Greenhouse vanilla growing
Post by: Midwestfruitjungle on October 08, 2022, 09:59:47 AM
There is a vanilla orchid growing at my colleges greenhouse. We are looking to trellis it on something, but there aren’t a lot of options. Would a wood or metal trellis work better or an actual tree?
Title: Re: Greenhouse vanilla growing
Post by: Epicatt2 on October 08, 2022, 12:51:38 PM
Since vanilla is very tropical, loving heat and humidity to succeed, then growing it in your zone it will require, as your topic suggests, a greenhouse.

The flowers, each of which lasts only one day need to be hand pollinated and there is a trick to that.

The vines won't flower though until they reach the top of what they are climbing on, can climb no higher, and the vine ends 'fall over'.  That triggers flowering if all other conditions are right.

Once the flowers have been pollinated (a daily ritual while the vine is in bloom) it takes a while for the vanilla 'beans' (seed pods) to mature and then they must be carefully processed and allowed fo slowly ferment.  There is information about that whole fermentation process online.

Good luck!

Paul M.
==
Title: Re: Greenhouse vanilla growing
Post by: roblack on October 08, 2022, 01:51:09 PM
Small tree works great. Ours grows on a jatropha tree, which is around 8 feet tall. Hanging and flowering in about a year, but I had good sized plants/cuttings.
Title: Re: Greenhouse vanilla growing
Post by: Finca La Isla on October 08, 2022, 07:31:47 PM
A year would be very fast for flowering. 2-4 years is more typical.
They can grow on pipe with cables between them in a greenhouse. Good to have a way for the roots to eventually reach the ground where you want to have lots of rotting mulch.
Peter
Title: Re: Greenhouse vanilla growing
Post by: Daintree on October 09, 2022, 09:46:01 AM
I have two in my greenhouse. Pardon the poor photos, I was too lazy to shut the foggers off and wait for it to dissipate...

One is growing on a double H shaped trellis made out of 2x4s. I can add more rungs to it as needed.
(https://i.postimg.cc/D4vGMyVh/61615296-9-D51-435-F-A34-D-D0-E2-A108-E957.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/D4vGMyVh)

The other is growing up a concrete "tree" that contains the nest boxes for my little parrots.
(https://i.postimg.cc/Hjdbx3rN/B9-AFA061-5854-4-E3-C-846-D-A96775484756.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/Hjdbx3rN)

The plants don't seem to care, as long as they can adhere their roots to it. I have huge masses of roots going down both and into the ground. If you zoom in on the tree pic you can see the aerial roots climbing down down the tree, and it is just painted concrete.

I think the important thing is that you can walk all the way around the trellis, and reach the top for hand pollination. I have missed blooms because they are sort of yellowish-green and blend in with the foliage and I didn't see them.

Cheers, Carolyn





Title: Re: Greenhouse vanilla growing
Post by: Plantinyum on October 09, 2022, 04:44:26 PM
I tried vanilla in my greenhouse last year but over winter it diesd, too cold for it in there.
For a trellis i would suggest to cut down a tree, dead or alive, and use the stump that has the preffered height and also some thick limbs at the top. U dont need big branches, just the main trunk/pole with a part of the scaffold branches at the top.
U could also use cement poles  like the ones that people use for their dragon fruit..
Title: Re: Greenhouse vanilla growing
Post by: Midwestfruitjungle on October 20, 2022, 06:36:56 PM
Does it like more shade or would it prefer a brighter location? It gets very little light right now but seems to be doing ok.
Title: Re: Greenhouse vanilla growing
Post by: Finca La Isla on October 20, 2022, 09:43:08 PM
Vanilla wants some shade but dark shade is not ideal. Living fence posts pruned to manage light shade in a relatively moist tropical climate is best. Vanilla is native where I live. It occurs as an understory epiphyte. If it is too dark development is slow. Too much sun will make the leaves pale with burn spots that introduce fungus like anthrachnose.
Peter

Title: Re: Greenhouse vanilla growing
Post by: Midwestfruitjungle on October 21, 2022, 08:35:44 PM
Vanilla wants some shade but dark shade is not ideal. Living fence posts pruned to manage light shade in a relatively moist tropical climate is best. Vanilla is native where I live. It occurs as an understory epiphyte. If it is too dark development is slow. Too much sun will make the leaves pale with burn spots that introduce fungus like anthrachnose.
Peter

Good to know. I’ll probably set up some kind of wooden post for it to grow up in a little brighter of a spot. It is a frosted plastic sheeting so I believe it helps soften the light anyways.