Vanilla comes from the fruit of an orchid called Vanilla planifolia .

The vanilla plant has its 'roots' in the rainforests of Central and South America. In Guatemala, vanilla beans have been used to flavor cocoa for millennia. The vanilla plant is rare and very difficult to obtain in Europe.

Origin

The orchid, Vanilla planifolia, comes from the rainforests of the Gulf of Mexico to the Amazon in Brazil.

The vanilla plant became known to Europeans in the 16th century, but it was not until the second half of the 19th century that large-scale cultivations were established outside of vanilla's natural range. Today, vanilla is grown and extracted from the vanilla orchid in most tropical countries.

Care

Vanilla is a tropical orchid and needs to be grown in orchid soil . Vanilla grows as a climber and needs a plant support . To grow vanilla indoors, a temperature between 20-30 degrees is needed.

The vanilla plant thrives best in indirect light, just make sure the plant gets enough light in the winter. Read more about vanilla care here so you can extract vanilla from this unusual orchid!

How do vanilla beans grow on the orchid?

Vanilla needs to be hand-pollinated to bear fruit. The flowers open early in the morning and wither the next day. The vanilla bean is picked unripe and is then dark green in color. The vanilla pods then need to be fermented and it is only then that the vanilla flavor emerges.

Appearance

The stems of the vanilla orchid are long, climbing and cling with aerial roots, just like many other orchid species. The aerial roots of the vanilla flower are green and fleshy, they can grow up to 10-15 meters long. Vanilla planifolia has thick green and pointed leaves.

Vanilla planifolia is the source of natural vanilla, one of the most popular and expensive spices in the world. Vanilla is used for its aroma and flavor in a variety of food products from baked goods to beverages. If you want to learn more about how vanilla grows and how you can get fruit from this unusual orchid yourself, you can read more here . Buy vanilla orchid online and try growing vanilla at home.