Florida Cymbidiums

[orchids3]

FLORIDA CYMBIDIUMS
As a student at Idaho State College I worked at an American Rose Society Test Garden in Pocatello Idaho. The purpose was to test the suitability of different roses for that climate. A lot of the work was paid for and sponsored by a man who did it as a hobby. My part of the effort was to shovel Cow manure on the collection. The work was hard but then I have never had any particular allergy to hard work. My reward for the effort was $1.25 Per hour and a real respect for what was being accomplished. Too bad more testing of this type is not done on all plants that could be grown in different climates particularly my favorite, the cymbidium Orchid.

Cymbidiums that will grow and bloom in N.E. Florida is something I have made spent many years of effort and enjoyment to learn. Each year and each plant teaches me something new and the more I want to know about this fascinating species. My cymbidiums have not been inside for six years and that included the past few nights. Success is the result of successfully creating a micro climate for the plants. All except one of two are in fine shape.

A lot of my cymbidiums are too young to determine how well they will do. I also have a lot of plants that are no longer available commercially but have bloomed well for me. Many are not included on the attached list of Cymbidiums which will bloom reliably. I would love to know what anyone in Florida has success with so that I can add it to my list.

Flower initiation is not an exact science. Generally Cymbidiums like a 20 degree F day/night temperature swing with the high being 75 degrees F. in July and August - paticularly true of the large standard species which originated in the Himalayas. Our fall is closer to this temp swing so plants which initiate spikes during the fall are often successful in Florida - but the actual flowering is usually later causing flower spikes to abort in the heat of the early summer. Some plants don’t get the right light temperature combination in our conditions. Finding plants which initiate flower spikes and not abort is what the effort is all about. Cymbidium breeders and serious growers know that during the hybridization process the day night temperature swing requirement often tends to blur due to the variable of different species. The resulting hybrids become more tolerant of climate variables as a result. There are also strange things going on with the genes of these plants which require cold temperature in that the same plants seem to also have a "hot" gene. Some of the variation is due to the range that we find the species. Finding a species collected in a hot area may give us warm growers. Another trick is to get the right combination to turn on the hot gene. As I learn more about all this the more curious I become. The only sure way to know is to
Grow the plant and see for ourselves.

LIST OF Cymbidiums which have been reliable bloomers in Jacksonville Florida

Alice Alisa (Cym. Alice Williams x Cym. Sleeping Beauty) REL. Bloom
Amesbury 'Ice Wine' (Geraint x Ora Lee )
Auntie Mary Kovich (sinense X insigne) Easton REL. Bloom
Donovan (Kusunda Shining 'VE Day' X Sleeping Ransom 'Blazing Gold') Hatfield REL. Bloom
Dorothy Stockstill 'Forgotten Fruit' (Cym. Phar Lap x Cym. Miss Muffet) Hatfield REL. Bloom
Florida Cracker (Wild Colonial Boy x Golden Elf) Hatfield REL. Bloom
Floripink (Cym. Kurun x Cym. Vanguard) B&D at Orlando REL. Bloom
For Your Love (Cym. Devon Gala x Cym. Snow Aker) Hatfield REL. Bloom
Genji (Korintji x San Miguel) B&D at Orlando REL. Bloom
Gladys Whitesell 'Contrast' (Fifi X perishii) Hatfield REL. Bloom
Gloria Naugle (Golden Elf 'Sundust' (4N) X Kusuda Shining 'Brick' (4N) EVERGLADES REL. Bloom
Golden Elf 'Sundance' (ensifolium X Enid Haupt) Everglades REL. Bloom
Golden Tiger 'Pure Glory' (Golden Cascade x tigrinum ) Hatfield/ Easton REL. Bloom
Hawaii 'Golden Nugget' (Chironla X Dorama ) Not Sure REL. Bloom
Honey Bunny'Sugar Candy' (Sara Jean X Lovely Bunny) 2ea Hatfield REL. Bloom
Janis Lin 'Emily Kate' (Sara Jean X Omymilum) Hatfield REL. Bloom
Kauai (Golden Elf x Cym. Sleeping Dawn) Batchman REL. Bloom
Kusuda Beauty (Kusuda Shining 'Brick' 4N X Red Beauty 'Netty' 4N) 2 Everglades REL. Bloom
La Costa 'Elf' (Olymilum X Baltic Snow) Orchid Adventures REL. Bloom
La Costa Moonlight (Baltic Glacier x Olymilum) Geiger REL. Bloom
Levis Duke 'John Gulbis' (Blue Smoke X Etta Barlow) (Costco) REL. Bloom
Lovely Rain "New Horizon" (Enzan Moon x Cym. Parish Madness) Hatfield REL. Bloom
Lusterous (Louisiana x Sunrise) Owned many years REL. Bloom
Marianne Faithful " New Horizon" (Tracey Reddaway x Cym. Karen) Hatfield REL. Bloom
Maui Mist 'Wakefields Snow" (Olymilum x aloifolium) Maui orchids REL. Bloom
Maureen Carter (sinense x Sleeping Beauty) Hatfield REL. Bloom
Milton Carpenter 'Everglades Gold' (Golden Elf X Via Amberino) B&D Gainsville REL. Bloom
Mimi 'Lucifer' (pumilum X Doris Aurea) 3 Many Years REL. Bloom
Pasadena 'Beautiful' (Joan of Arc x George Lycurgas) Many Years REL. Bloom
Sarah Jean 'Ice Cascade' (pumilum X Sleeping Beauty) Hatfield REL. Bloom
Star Bright 'Centaur' REL. Bloom

Sweetheart ‘Sensation’

Sweet Spring "New Horizon" 4N (sinense x Cymbidium Alexanderi) Hatfield REL. Bloom
Taste of China(Kusunda Shining #4 sinense 'Alba' Hatfield REL. Bloom
Tender love 'Independence' (perishii X ensifolium) E-Bay REL. Bloom
Tom Thumb (pumilum x Coronado) Many Years REL. Bloom
Valerie Absolonova (Golden Elf 'Sundust' X Peter Pan) Easton - REL. Bloom
Via Wylie-Coyote (Via Coyote x Via Mar-Vista) DeLosier REL. Bloom
Western Movie 'Key Lime' (Cym. Blue Smoke x Cym. parishii) Hatfield REL. Bloom
Yellow Elf (Pure Gold ' 14 Karat' X Golden Elf 'Sundust' Batchman REL. Bloom
Christian Heritage 'Andy's Gift' X Tracey Reddaway Evergllades REL. Bloom
Golden Tiger 2n X Pure Glory ‘Alba Diploid’+ Colchicine Hatfield REL. Bloom
Mem. Jacqueline Oyston 'Ice Princess' X Atlanta 'Geyserland' Hatfield REL. Bloom
One Tree Hill X (Carilara X Applejack) X Alice Williams 'Emerald' Batchman REL. Bloom

Hatfield Orchids Hatfield Orchids
Batchman (Casa de Las Orquides) Casa de las Orquideas Online

Grower in Deland Fl
Cym. Pistachio Mint (Cym Bill Quinn x Cym Tom Thumb) ¼ pumilum Note Tom Thumb on my list
Cym. Mary Pinchess (Cym pumilum x Cym Pajaro)
Cym. Allie Bird (Cym. pumilum x Cym. Susa)
Cym. Cameliard (Cym. Sweetheart x Cym. Angela) ¼ pumilum
Cym. Mimi (Cym pumilum x Cym. Doris Aurea)
Cym. Fifi (Cym madidum x Cym Argonaut) madidum blooms easy does not like too much sun or cold
Cym. Peter Pan (Cym. ensifolium x Cym. Miretta) ensifolium is a very warm grower
Cym. Chen's Ruby (Cym. iridioides x Cym. Golden Elf)1/4 ensifolium from Golden Elf
Cym. Tityus x Alderman Cross has a lot of eberno-lowianum which I find to be warm tolerant
Cym. Grassy Waters x Claude Pepper Not sure why it grows warm but it does – sinense could account
For some of it but Green Glass also blooms well.