 Hi, this is Yolanda from vanVeenBalbs.com and in this segment we're going to learn all about how to grow vanilla. So vanilla is a plant that's actually pretty new to the European herb trade because it was found in Mexico. It was grown only in Mexico by the Aztecs until they were found by the Spanish and then brought back to Europe. So now a vanilla plant is an orchid and it's the only vining orchid in the world. It makes a beautiful vine and when I was in Tahiti they were on the side of the road everywhere growing along the fences and they had a beautiful yellow orchid flowers all over them and they're just one of the most beautiful plants that I've ever seen in the whole world. So I'm always fascinated about plants and how they adjust to being grown in different parts of the world because Crocosmia are from South Africa and they have the sunbirds to pollinate them in South Africa when they come to the Americas they have the hummingbirds to pollinate them. So the vanilla plant is asexual and that means it has the male and female organs together and in the flower part the male and female organs are separated. They're next to each other but they have a little part of a flower in between them. So the bee would pollinate the plant by going into one part and to the other part. Well when they try to grow it and other parts of the world they found that they didn't pollinate and they never got fruits. And so when realized along the line that all you have to do is take some of the pollen off of the male part and just rub it on to the female part. And that way your plant will flower and then produce a beautiful seapod and that makes a seapod is what makes the vanilla. It's ground up and then it makes beautiful gorgeous yummy vanilla. So it's a little bit of a challenge to grow vanilla but I know some of my friends and one of the growers at the farmers market and he says he's very successful. He just plants the orchids along fencing in the greenhouse and they cannot go below 50 degrees. So if you live in a coal climate you've got to keep them indoors in the winter and then just grow them outdoors over the summer. But in warm climates you can leave them outdoors year round. So you let them grow into a vine and it takes about three, four even five years to flower so you can't be frustrated or you can't be impatient. And once you get those first flowers you make sure and pollinate them. You've got to rub the pollen onto the female part of it for it to produce a fruit. And it'll grow into a vine that's 10, 20 feet long and it's a beautiful plant whether it's grown in a greenhouse and colder climates or outside in warmer climates. And it's a plant that you can have lots of joy in growing.