Orchid knowledge for beginners

Carry forward the national orchid culture and spread the knowledge of orchids

Ornamental orchids are usually divided into two categories according to the history and national conditions of cultivation. One is epiphytic orchids with a short cultivation history (about 200 years), which are mainly produced in tropical and subtropical regions, whose flowers are large, colorful and without fragrance, which are preferred by Europeans and Americans, often referred to as "foreign orchids" or "modern orchids". Such as Cartland, Dendrobium, Phalaenopsis, Cymbidium (Simbilan), Dendrobium and Oncidium, etc.; the other kind has a long cultivation history (about 1000 years), mainly distributed in subtropical and temperate regions, its flowers are small, elegant colors, fragrance is far, loved by the Chinese people and the Japanese people, often referred to as "national orchid" or "Chinese orchid", also known as "oriental orchid". Such as Chunlan, Cymbidium, Jianlan, Mulan and Han Lan and so on.

Chinese orchids have elusive bursts of fragrance, accompanied by dignified flower appearance, simple and elegant demeanor, fully reflecting the unique oriental style. Not with its bright colors, but with its pleasant fragrance, it is deeply loved by the Chinese people, and it is praised as "national incense", "Xiangzu", "the incense of kings" and "the first incense in the world".

More than two thousand years ago, Confucius praised the orchid like this: "Zhilan was born in a deep valley, not unmanned and fragrant." it expresses the proud character and resolute temperament of orchids. Juxtaposed with plum, bamboo and chrysanthemum, it is called "four gentlemen".

There are more than 40 species of Cymbidium in the world and about 20 species in China. Chinese orchids usually refer to several terrestrial orchids of the genus Cymbidium:

Spring flowering Cymbidium: flowering in late March, flowers solitary or a small number of twins in scape, scape shorter than leaves, flowers light yellowish green, extremely fragrant, varieties such as Song Mei, Luyun, Longzi and so on.

Summer flowering Cymbidium: from April to May, the leaves are erect, the scape is nearly the same as the leaves, with 6-12 flowers, the flowers are light yellowish green, and the fragrance is slightly lower than that of Chunlan. The varieties are also divided into plum petals, lotus petals, daffodils and so on.

Jianlan flowering in autumn: flowering from July to October, some types continue to blossom since the Summer Solstice autumn, known as four orchids. Scape is slightly shorter than leaves, with 4-7 flowers, light yellowish green and fragrant.

Winter flowering cymbidium and cold orchid: also known as orchid, flowering from January to March, a few bloom in autumn, leaves wider, sword-shaped, scape higher than the leaves, 7-20 flowers, calyx and petals with purple-brown markings. Cold orchid also blossoms from winter to early spring, but the leaves are narrow, linear, scape small, erect, slightly higher than the leaves, 5-7 flowers, petals are also narrow.

Chinese people's appreciation of Chinese orchids has experienced the development process of smelling fragrance, looking at flowers, observing leaves and appreciating art. Chinese people traditionally love orchids, mainly by smelling fragrance. The ancients highly respected the aroma of orchids, known as "national fragrance", "king fragrance", "the first fragrance in the world". The aroma of orchids is different from that of many fragrances, it is sometimes sometimes, sometimes hidden, sometimes near and sometimes far, mysterious. The ancient poem said: "hand-peeled orchid for two or three years, the sun warm wind and the second open, sitting for a long time do not know the incense in the room, when pushing the window, there are butterflies flying." This is a vivid description of Lan Xiang. In addition to the aroma, the noble and elegant orchids, which do not compete with peaches and plums, and are not discolored by frost and snow, are also deeply loved by the people of our country. In particular, the "vegetarian heart" of anthocyanin white is regarded as the first of all orchids, that is, the so-called "wind of a gentleman". In addition to smell the fragrance and see the color, but also pay attention to the petal shape, requiring the flower shape to have charm, such as the orchid two lateral calyx, arranged horizontally "one word shoulder", has always been regarded as a good species, such as lip close to the core column, slightly exposed but not extended, it can be called high-grade.

Although orchids are good, they bloom for a while after all. Therefore, some people turn from looking at flowers to looking at leaves, thinking that "looking at flowers for a while, looking at leaves for years". Orchid leaves are fresh green all the year round, rigid and soft, and graceful, even if they are not in florescence, they are also a living work of art. The poem said: "the light of crying dew is disorderly, including the self-inclination of the wind and shadow. The laity explains this, watching Ye Sheng and looking at flowers." It can be seen that the beauty of orchid leaves is highly valued.

In recent years, some people have a preference for yellow and white stripes and spots on the leaves of Chinese orchids. These stripes or spots are called "art". Orchids with "art" changes are called "Yilan", and their value is several to dozens of times higher than those without "art". In recent years, it has changed from "leaf art" to "flower art", giving a high appraisal to the appearance of double or abnormal petals of orchids.

At present, the appreciation trend of Chinese orchids has turned to the so-called "styling art", that is, the special morphological beauty of dwarf odd leaves. And from a single "flower art", "leaf art" or "pattern art" to a comprehensive dwarf, strange leaf, thread art, strange flower four colors of both "the best". According to the appreciation habits of the masses, the appreciation of orchids can be summarized as "ten looks":

Look at the fragrance. The one who is clear but not turbid is the top grade.

Look at the second position. The whole plant is symmetrical, and the coordination of flowers and leaves is the best.

Look at the three colors. The best color is light green, followed by dark green, followed by red and then turned to green, followed by red and purple. The leaf color is best if it is oily and shiny.

Look at the shoulders. Those whose left and right lobes rise slightly are called "flying shoulders", which is the most precious; those who flatten horizontally into "one shoulder" are superior species; and those with two petals drooping after flowering are called "falling shoulders", followed by them.

Look at the petals. "petals" (actually 3 sepals) shaped like lotus petals are top grade, followed by plum petals, followed by daffodils petals.

Six, look at it. The heart is smooth, fleshy, thick and concave into a pocket as a good breed.

Look at the tongue. The lip flap is straight, round, short and large. The color on the tongue is called "moss", with excellent color and white color as the best, followed by yellow. There are often red lines or massive erythema on the tongue, and those with bright colors are better. It is better to form a spot, a piece, or a finished shape.

Eight, look at the nose. The nose should be small, and those who appear to be brilliant are the best.

Nine look at the shell. Green shell is the best, followed by purple; fine texture, thin and hard is good, thin and soft is called "rotten clothes", not enough.

Ten look at the stem. Stalk is scape, with cyan, length commensurate with flowers and leaves, thin and higher than the leaves is better.

The above "ten looks" include all the four aspects of qi, color, spirit and rhyme that are very important in the evaluation of orchids.

Because of different species, orchids have different producing areas and ecological environment, so they should be treated differently when they are cultivated. Ramet is the main part of reproduction.

Orchids, you are a good teacher on the way to raise orchids.

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