2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Cymbidium (Latin Cymbidium) - a genus of epiphytic herbaceous perennial plants belonging to the Orchid family (Latin Orchidaceae). The genus Cymbidium stands out among the numerous relatives of the Orchid family for its exquisite aroma of the inflorescences of its plants, for which it attracted the attention of the Chinese philosopher Confucius, who lived in the 6th-5th centuries BC and called these types of orchids "Kings of aromas".
What's in your name
The official botanical name of the genus "Cymbidium" is based on the Latin word "cymba", meaning "boat". The reason for this name was the shape of the flowers of plants. In English literature, the genus is sometimes referred to as the "Boat orchid".
In floriculture literature, the genus name is abbreviated to three letters, "Cym".
Although a person has long been familiar with orchids of this genus, the first botanical description was made at the turn of the 19th century (in 1799) by Peter Olof Swartz (1760-21-09 - 1818-19-09), a Swedish botanist.
Description
Since plants of the Cymbidium genus belong to orchids with a sympoidal growth form, that is, not in a hurry to grow up, but preferring to grow in width, the average plant height is 60 centimeters, and the length of the peduncles reaches 90 centimeters.
A flower brush is born from the base of the last fresh pseudobulb. The number of flowers on a peduncle reaches 15 or more pieces. The diameter of the flowers, depending on the type of plant and the comfort of living conditions, varies from 5 to 10 centimeters.
The bloom lasts during the winter season, displaying a fantastic variety of colors. It is only impossible to find blue here, but white, cream, yellow, yellowish-green and green, pink, red, brown and even black, as well as several different shades at the same time - all this is real and beautiful.
Prolonged flowering pleases plant owners for about ten weeks. The flowers are traditionally waxy in texture, and the oval sepals and flower petals are nearly the same size.
The Chinese types of Cymbidium are especially popular, the aroma of which was noted by the philosopher Confucius even before our era. But not only the exuded aromas attract flower growers, but also the relative cold resistance of certain species that can survive at an air temperature of plus 7 degrees Celsius. If the cold snap is short-lived, then even minus 2 degrees will not be fatal for them.
Varieties
According to some reports, the genus consists of 52 evergreen orchid species. Plants of the genus Cymbidium in their natural environment are found in tropical and subtropical regions of Asia and in the north of the distant mainland, Australia. Large-flowered species grow at high altitudes. There are several types of the genus:
* Cymbidium hookerianum
* Cymbidium ensifolium
* Cymbidium aloifolium
* Cymbidium lansifolium
* Cymbidium bicolor (Cymbidium bicolor).
Usage
Fragrant and large inflorescences of plants of the Cymbidium genus could not be unnoticed by lovers of the orchid kingdom, and therefore have found widespread use of natural and hybrid species in decorating human living space. In warm tropics, they grow beautifully in gardens, and in areas with cold winters, they hide in greenhouses or rooms, feeling cozy in flower pots, more like skillfully painted vases.
If in Japan, starting from the 17th century, they became popular potting plants, then in modern Australia and Europe they are actively grown for cutting, since the waxy flowers of orchids can retain their freshness for a long time in a state weaned from the mother plant.
Plants of the genus are even used for food, as, for example, in Bhutan the species "Cymbidium hookerianum" (Cymbidium hooked), from which they prepare a national dish called "olatshe" (olasha) or "olachoto" (olachoto).
