Aesthetic Appreciation of the Plain-Centered Orchid Varieties Zhizu and Yuepei

Author: Qiandao Lanchi

Let me first talk about the pure aesthetics of orchids. Judging orchid fragrance comes first. As for evaluating the merits of the scent, I will not say much (it is related to an individual's nasal sensitivity and preferences). Next is spiritual charm. Here I will not divide it into fine categories, but only discuss the overall harmony of the flower-and-leaf combination, as well as the spirit of the flower and the elegance of the leaves. Only last do we discuss the petal form and color. The ancients summarized a set of quantitative standards to make orchid appreciation and evaluation convenient. The so-called petal-type theory, the most essential part of orchid culture, is a summary of petal form and color. This summary is not entirely a standard for judging the beauty or ugliness of flowers; it is merely an industry standard created for convenience in appreciation. If we speak purely of the beauty or ugliness of flowers, many ordinary flowers are not necessarily inferior to Song Mei or Da Fugui, but to elevate orchids into an object of connoisseurship, one must make choices and generalizations. Using the ease or difficulty of discovering various types, combined with the aesthetic petal-type theory, this standard was thus born. Of course, the earlier petal-type theory also had its deficiencies. The ancients emphasized the beauty of plainness and spiritual charm, while modern orchid enthusiasts have added "color, artistry, and rarity," making it more comprehensive.

Now let us talk about the petal-type theory (I will now also include later additions). Everyone knows that this theory can now be summarized and subdivided into many categories, such as plain-centered, lotus petal, plum petal, narcissus petal, outer butterfly, inner butterfly, peony petal, chrysanthemum petal, jade-tree type, necktie flower, and flower-and-leaf dual-art varieties. Among them, plainness and artistry are not discussed separately; they can also encompass all the above categories. Now let us talk only about plain-centered orchids. Plain-centered, as the name implies, refers to a plain-colored flower center, and the flower center of an orchid generally refers to the lip. If the lip is pure and free of mixed colors, it can be called plain. Previously it referred only to a pure white lip, but now the meaning is much broader: as long as the lip is of a single solid color (whether red or black), it can be called plain, and plain-centered orchids of other colors are even rarer and more precious (of course, from the perspective of orchid aesthetics, this is not necessarily better than white plain-centered orchids, but sometimes rarity and uncommonness better match human psychology). Plain-centered orchids can also appear in all types: they can be ordinary-flower plain-centered, lotus plain-centered, plum plain-centered, narcissus plain-centered, and so on. When discussing flower grade, lotus is often ranked first. Although it is hard to say aesthetically how much more beautiful lotus is than plum or narcissus, in terms of rarity it indeed surpasses plum and narcissus. In my view, except for ordinary flowers, all other types summarized in the petal-type theory are not aesthetically comparable; one can only say that every vegetable and radish has its lover, and grade can only be defined by rarity combined with aesthetics. Since plainness can cover all types, its grade evaluation standards naturally also refer to the evaluation standards of the various other types. Therefore, ordinary flowers, at the very bottom of the petal-type grade theory, are likewise the lowest among plain-centered orchids. This is also unrelated to the beauty or ugliness of the flower itself; it is merely a combination of rarity and aesthetics. Plain-centered, plain-centered: since what is emphasized is the center, the lip is its main point of appreciation. In some types of flowers, because of the characteristics of the flower itself, the lip is not so obvious (for example, many plum and unusual flowers), so in the evaluation of plainness there are places slightly different from petal-type grading. Therefore, narcissus plain-centered orchids with obvious lips are superior to many plum plain-centered orchids. This is also why I think soft-petal Zhizu is superior to hard-petal Zhizu (the lip of soft-petal Zhizu is more extended and larger than that of hard-petal, and the petals are more smooth and clean). Lotus plain-centered remains the top among plain-centered orchids, not only because lotus is hard to obtain, but also because lotus itself has requirements for the lip that also conform to the requirements of plainness.

Now, by the way, let us talk about Zhizu and Yuepei in relation to the current hot topic. Yuepei is a representative among ordinary-flower plain-centered orchids (and it is peach-cheeked; although in grade peach-cheek is one level lower, I think this does no great harm). Although predecessors defined it as a first-rank lotus plain-centered orchid, strictly speaking, apart from a slight root constriction and angle release, its petal type is far from lotus. Perhaps it is because true lotus plain-centered orchids are too difficult to produce, so people settle for the next best thing. Among old varieties there are several other plain-centered orchids closer to the definition of lotus (only closer; plainly speaking, they are ordinary flowers with somewhat better petals), but apart from their petals, they clearly fall short in other aspects of form and aesthetics. In terms of form, color, and overall aesthetics, Yuepei indeed surpasses quite a few traditional plain-centered orchids. However, this is only relative to those traditional varieties. Now quite a few plain-centered orchids have surpassed these former ones; let time verify it (here I will put in a word for my own Yu's Lotus Plain-Centered, and let time verify it). There is also a big problem with ordinary-flower plain-centered orchids. Everyone knows that the evaluation standard for ordinary-flower plain-centered orchids is their opening performance and color. Color is a smaller issue, but opening performance is greatly affected by the environment. Once vernalization or development is not ideal, the opening performance will be very different, so different that you would not even dare recognize it; all the beauty is gone, leaving only plainness as distinct from ordinary flowers. Unlike other flowers with petal types, even if the opening performance is poor, the type remains. Therefore, orchid enthusiasts in areas with poor vernalization conditions should also be mentally prepared before introducing this kind of plain-centered orchid in which opening performance decides everything. Now let us talk about Zhizu. As I said before about Zhizu plain-centered, aesthetically speaking, soft petals should be superior to hard petals, and Zhizu's opening performance (single-character shoulder, outer petals arched and embracing the pouch) and flower retention, as well as the overall flower-and-leaf combination (fine, curved, drooping leaves with the flower held above the leaves), are all remarkable. From this point of view, even if it were not plain-centered, it would still be a fine narcissus. Its only shortcoming is that the texture of its petals is slightly thin and lacks a fleshy quality. As for grade, I think Zhizu completely surpasses Yuepei, but as for beauty or ugliness, one cannot say so. I have already said that the grade standard for orchids is a combination of rarity and aesthetics, not pure aesthetics. In fact, there is a simple way to do this: while retaining the other characteristics of Zhizu and Yuepei in all respects, just add red dots to their lips, and then see what everyone thinks. Orchid enthusiasts who can use Photoshop might as well try it. Of course, both should be their most classic and standard opening performances.