What are the reasons the Four Seasons Orchid (Cymbidium ensifolium) is so deeply loved

   The Four Seasons Orchid does not have the upright, sword-like stance of the Spring Sword (Cymbidium tortisepalum), standing gracefully like a beauty, nor the rainbow-like, majestic grandeur of the Huilan (Cymbidium faberi). Yet with her unique charm, the Four Seasons Orchid has attracted more and more enthusiasts to love her and care for her. So, what reasons do we have for loving the Four Seasons Orchid?

   We love the Four Seasons Orchid because she is easy to grow~~ The Four Seasons Orchid grows at low altitudes, matures quickly, has very good stress resistance and adaptability, and has stronger disease resistance than other varieties. She is especially suitable for beginners to practice with, can be grown all over the country, and can be grown well everywhere. After potting, she easily settles in and quickly sends out branches and leaves, growing lush and full, giving a great sense of accomplishment! Because she is easy to grow, she is planted relatively widely and has long enjoyed the reputation of the "national grain coupon"!

   We love the Four Seasons Orchid because she blooms easily~~ Spring Sword, Spring Orchid (Cymbidium goeringii), Huilan and other spring grasses must go through several months of bud development and vernalization before they can bloom well, but the Four Seasons Orchid is different. From the emergence of the flower bud, in as little as one week she can hold her buds and reveal her pistils, blooming with fragrance. Many orchid friends may have had the same experience as me~~ Sometimes, without even noticing the buds on a pot of Four Seasons Orchid, suddenly you see that she has already bloomed, stirring the heart, bringing surprise, and filling one with unexpected joy!

   We love the Four Seasons Orchid because her fragrance is rich~~ The flowering period of the Four Seasons Orchid falls right in the unbearably hot days of midsummer. In the sweltering summer and autumn seasons, if you can have a pot of fragrant orchid at home for you, as an orchid lover, to admire and scent, is that not a pleasant enjoyment? Is that not a miraculous remedy for driving away heat and relieving the summer swelter?

   We love the Four Seasons Orchid because her flowering period is unique~~ There are many varieties that bloom in spring: Spring Orchid, Spring Sword, Huilan~~ But the Four Seasons Orchid is the only variety whose flowering period runs through both summer and autumn. Is this not a gift from nature to us orchid lovers? Just imagine, if there were no Four Seasons Orchid, during the two seasons of summer and autumn throughout the year, what would we orchid lovers enjoy? What would we use to scent the air? Hehe.

   We love the Four Seasons Orchid because her colors are rich: red like fire, white like snow. There is the blazing red of Xueyuan Hongsu, and the snow-white of Lijiang Snow, the soul-stirring beauty of Emei Morning Light, and the mysterious unpredictability of Emei Buddha's Light!

   We love the Four Seasons Orchid because she has so many petal types~~ The number of petal-type flowers among Four Seasons Orchids can be said to be among the very best in orchids, giving orchid friends a very wide range of choices. There are the earlier He Wang and Gai Mei, and the Huang Guang Deng and Lu Guang Deng that were once extremely popular at their peak. There are Shuanglong Hongmei, Yunchang Mei, and Jingcai Mei, with both outstanding color and petal type, and there are also Datang Gongfen, Yuhe Mei, and Qingshen Diyi Mei, which one never tires of admiring~~

   We love the Four Seasons Orchid because her plant form is elegant and her flowers stand well above the leaves~~ Among Four Seasons Orchids, some varieties have medium-short leaves, and their flowers are especially likely to rise above the foliage, such as Qianfo Hongmei (Jingcai Mei), Emei Sanxing (Chuichui Die), Shenghuo, and Qiaojiaren (a color-changing peach-red flower)~~

   We love the Four Seasons Orchid because she has many varieties that are excellent in both flower and foliage~~ Such as the long-established Yinbian Dagong and Jinsi Mawei, Tigu Yahuang, Qingshan Yuquan, Qianfo Yusu, Caifeng, Hanjiang Chunse, Jinglong Sanxing, Caiyun Fei, the variegated Jinhe, and the crystal-flecked Shuanglong Hongmei, and so on~~

   We love the Four Seasons Orchid because she offers high value for money, cheap and beautiful. Because the Four Seasons Orchid is easy to grow and has a high seedling production rate, her price is relatively low. For the same flower quality and the same grade, the Four Seasons Orchid will be cheaper. This is also one of the reasons large growers are unwilling to get involved. But how can we, the vast number of orchid lovers, favor one and slight another just because the price is low and the profit is small? Hehe~~

   We love the Four Seasons Orchid because her temperament is elegant and her charm extraordinary. There is a poem by the Jin Dynasty poet Fu Yun as evidence: "Autumn orchids shade the jade pool, the pool water clear and fragrant." In midsummer and golden autumn, the red sun blazes like fire, the heat steams and is hard to endure, but with a fragrant orchid to ease the boredom, one refreshes the spirit and lifts the mood like a hero.

   To love the Four Seasons Orchid, many reasons are not needed. As the saying goes, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." If you love her, she looks pleasing to the eye; if you love her, you are willing to care for her; if you love her~~ "For her I grow haggard, and though my belt grows loose, I never regret it." If you love her, then grow her~~

   Perhaps some orchid friends will say that Four Seasons Orchid flowers are a bit small. To be truthful, some petal-type flowers of the Four Seasons Orchid are indeed somewhat small, such as Huang Guang Deng and Lu Guang Deng. But no person is perfect, and no flower is perfect. Although small, the petal type of Guang Deng Mei is indeed quite good. Besides, there are quite a few large-flowered Four Seasons Orchid varieties, such as Gai Mei, Jun He, Hongxing Mei, He Zi, Siji Jiyuan, and so on~~

   If Spring Orchid is a modest beauty, Huilan a noble lady, Spring Sword the champion of Sichuan orchids, and Lianban (Cymbidium tortisepalum var. longibracteatum) a rare flower of Yunnan, then I think the Four Seasons Orchid is undoubtedly everyone's sweetheart. Every orchid lover can admire her, love her, care for her, and possess her~~ Hehe~~

   If you love the Four Seasons Orchid, do you have one?      (Qingyijiang Orchid Garden, Xu Lianqiang, in the early morning of July 26, 2013)