Since vandas are typically strap-leafed monopodial epiphytes that produce flowers with a tri-lobed lip and nectary spur, early taxonomic debate focused on Vanda sanderiana's unique vegetative and floral characteristics: leaves deeply channelled, withstanding more than average sunlight exposure; and flowers with bi-lobed lips, spurless. Rudolf Schlechter proposed the monotypic genus Euanthe (1914) to effectively place this orchid in a class of its own.
For all such distinctive traits, Vanda sanderiana remains fully inter-fertile with other vandas. The revision of Vanda alliance names and classifications (2013), on the basis of molecular taxonomy, has not resulted in any transfer of V. sanderiana to a separate genus. Conversely, it remains the principal species incorporated in Vanda hybrids, being the progenitor of 372 named progeny and more than 6,300 named descendants in the International Orchid Register. [Emrys Chew]