What's new
  • Please note members who been with us for more than 10 years have been upgraded to "Veteran" status and will receive exclusive benefits. If you wish to find out more about this or support IcMag and get same benefits, check this thread here.
  • Important notice: ICMag's T.O.U. has been updated. Please review it here. For your convenience, it is also available in the main forum menu, under 'Quick Links"!

Clarence's Bourbon Vanilla Grow Update and Grow Guide (post #75)

Lost in a SOG

GrassSnakeGenetics
yayyy you got fruit man! :yummy:

This is awesome!! You inspired me to have my first go at growing a Vanilla planifolia about 5 long years ago but it was eaten by spidermite that came in on a frickin banana.. I spent 4 months in the hole fighting the borg man in the end I napalmed my whole world and the toxic purple winter that followed finished the job, they were never to be seen again after, neither was I. I'd changed :badday:

Ahem and now i'm having another go. I have a 2' long vine in my veg box for the extra humidity. Can I please pick your brains C?

They actually seem kinda hardy if you get them in a place they're happy enough with, and that is spidermite free.

So they can take low-medium soil strength once rooted in nicely in a weaker mix so long as it's airy? I was thinking mixing some canna terra with orchid bark/soil and add like a 5-10% mix of bat guano, castings, and biochar.

Do you raise the humidity at all for them? I read that the flowering is mainly instigated by changing conditions from cooler/more moist to lighter and dryer conditions?

I'm dreaming of making a funky flower room with a vanilla tactically hiding behind and around bananas.. God damn bananas are all in quarantine for the next year until i'm happy there are no fucking spidermite on them.. it's like aphids and roses..

:smoke out:
 

Clarence

FUZZY WUZZY
Veteran
Your soil mix sounds good as far as I know. It's pretty much the same as I have done. I've only ever had them in my living room so they have had whatever the RH has been in there. I have not once tried to change the humidity. I've never had spider mites on the vines. Even tho a couple of my baobabs next to them did. I did have a small problem with mealy bugs at one point. When I put my coffee plant next to the vanilla all of the mealy bugs slowly migrated over to the coffee tree. So I booted the coffee tree out into the garden and have not had mealy bugs since.

I've had banana plants before and they had huge problems with spider mites. Ended up burning those.

The vanilla like filtered sun light so it's been perfect having them in my south facing bay window. I have light coloured solid roll down blinds that I adjust to keep direct sun off them. Since I'm in the UK the sun doesn't seem too much of a problem. Maybe the last couple weeks have been strong. Most of the year the blinds are up.
 
Last edited:

Clarence

FUZZY WUZZY
Veteran
Vanilla pods now in the final stage, conditioning. Wrapped in wax paper and stored in some open test tubes placed in a wooden box. In this case still in the humidor. They will lose another 3% - 4% of moisture and will develop full fragrance. At the end the pods weight reduction from green to conditioned pod will range from 4.5:1 to 6:1 depending on the grade.






Cheers:tiphat:
 

Badfishy1

Active member
Getting close lad. I personally have experienced growing on a screened porch or attaching vine to bottom of a shady tree I have had my best growth in high humidity
 
F

Fozzie Bear

Hey ! This is very nice project. I am really interested how turned that creme anglais ?
 

Clarence

FUZZY WUZZY
Veteran
Hey ! This is very nice project. I am really interested how turned that creme anglais ?

The custard has been good for a couple years now. The vines continue to flower and bear fruit. It's been such a pleasing grow for me. Now that they're fruiting regularly I am proud and satisfied.

Cheers
C.:tiphat:
 

Clarence

FUZZY WUZZY
Veteran
So. Here's an update but first to explain. I moved from the UK in November 2018 to warmer climates. Since then the vanilla micro-plantation has been left in the very safe and capable hands of my Momma bee. My first student at the Clarence Vanilla Micro-Plantation School of Orchid Science. Momma bee takes her shit seriously. Kinda student becoming the teacher style.
So here below is her record of flowers on each raceme on each plant. Broken down to those that flowered, at what time the attempted pollination was and if it was successful.
Momma bee loves her spreadsheets:dance::whee:

Cheers Momma bee and hope you guys like the info

Cheers
C.:tiphat:


 

Clarence

FUZZY WUZZY
Veteran
So when the flower is successfully pollinated it closes up but stays connected to the raceme. Once the ovary stretches and starts to swell it stays attached. Unsuccessfully pollinated flowers fall off within a few days.

 

Mikell

Dipshit Know-Nothing
ICMag Donor
Veteran
GREEM BEEMS!

Still my hands down favourite grow on this site! Are you growing vanilla in your new digs?
 

Clarence

FUZZY WUZZY
Veteran
GREEM BEEMS!

Still my hands down favourite grow on this site! Are you growing vanilla in your new digs?

Thanks man. Appreciate the kind words.

Not growing them here yet but it's on my list of things to do. Just importing the vines is a bit more difficult where I am now.
 

Clarence

FUZZY WUZZY
Veteran
One of my favourite pictures of the raceme buds forming with happy sap dripping out.

Happy sap is exactly what it sounds like. Shows the plants are happy.

Tastes sugary.

 

Clarence

FUZZY WUZZY
Veteran
Some science shit.

Manual hand pollination of the flowers. Its a shame you need to rip the petals apart but hey-ho. Sacrifices must be made.:dance013:


 
Top