Cymbidium floribundum

Also known as: The Many Flowered or Cymbidium pumilum h.f. album Cymbidium pumilum h.v. forrestii Cymbidium floribundum h.f. suxin Cymbidium pumilum h.v. jitsugetsu Cymbidium floribundum f. virescens Cymbidium pumilum f. virescens Cymbidium illiberale Cymbidium pumilum Cymbidium floribundum var. pumilum Cymbidium chawalongense in the subfamily: Epidendroideae

Native to: Fujian - China Guangdong - China

General Information

The Many Flowered is a sympodial cool to warm growing epiphytic, lithophytic or terrestrial orchid belonging to the sub family Epidendroideae native to China.

Plant Description

Sympodial. Grows to 20-55cm. Each new growth has numerous arching leaves that grow to 15-40cm long. Pseudobulbs grow to 2.5cm

Flowers

Numerous long lasting, fragrant blossoms appear

Fragrance

The orchid is fragrant.

Substrate(s)

• Coarse
• Medium
• Small
• Fine
• Bark
• Charcoal
• Treefern
• Spaghnum Moss
• Perlite
• Sand

Care Notes

This orchid goes into a dormancy phase during winter, during this phase it is best not to provide water unless the plant is starting to look thirsty. The lack of water increases the chance of flowering in spring, and also reduces the likelihood of any rot forming. Do not resume watering until new growth has appeared and is growing strongly.

Often a period of intense growth occurs after dormancy. During this time the amount of light, water and fertiliser the plant receives will directly impact the amount of growth that occurs during this time, and in the case of seedlings, will reduce the time required to reach maturity.

It's recommended to heavily reduce the water amount at the middle to end of autumn to trigger dormancy. Leaves on older bulbs will begin to drop during this time while the newer bulbs continue to mature until terminal leaves appear at the tip of the pseudobulbs.

Repotting can be done any time of the year though it's best to do it in early spring when new growth is appearing as this also means new roots will appear to help the plant anchor into the new media and offset any damage to established roots during the repotting process.

 

Fragrant:

• IsFragrant

Climate

Grows at low to high elevations. Rainfall ranges from 15mm to 399mm per day, heaviest in August and lightest in November. Humidity ranges from 79% to 84%, highest in February and lowest in November. Temperature ranges from 3C to 23C, highest in July (16C to 23C) and lowest in January (3C to 12C).

Fertiliser

These plants thrive on fertiliser, especially during periods of growth. Liquid fertiliser can be applied at the recommended strength, augmented with manure pellets or other quickly degradable fertiliser, applied away from the base of the plant, during periods of strong growth that occurs in the middle of the growth season.

Do not fertilise during the dormant period. Avoid using slow release fertiliser that breaks down for longer than 3 months, if using apply only after dormancy when new shoots have developed noticably, applied 4-5 pellets per cup (250ml) of media.

They can benefit from a high phosphate fertiliser leading up to flowering season, and by a high nitrogen fertiliser when new growth appears. 

Use balanced fertiliser year round. Be sure to flush out excess fertiliser by running water through the media regularly year round. This plant is a heavy feeder year round, full strength fertiliser can be used. Fertiliser can be applied heavily year round. Use a low Nitrogen fertiliser during Winter. Use a high Phosphorous fertiliser during Winter.

Potting

This orchid prefers a fine, well draining media. Avoid commercial potting mixes as they may have 'wetting agents' that retain water for too long. A simple mix made up of 20% sand, 50% peat or moss, with the remaining 30% made up of decomposed bark and leaf litter would be adequate. Adding some charcoal to the mix will also help it last longer.

Repotting depends on how wet the media is usually. Every 2-3 years would suffice, or whenever the media shows signs of clumping, staying wet for too long, or smells foul.  

This plant does well mounted.