An Introduction to the Characteristics and Care Methods of the Dangzi Huilan Variety
Dangzi: Huilan (Cymbidium faberi), lotus-form narcissus petal, a traditional famous variety. Characteristics: Dangzi leaves are about 0.8 cm wide and about 40 cm long, with a semi-pendant leaf posture, graceful and elegant. Leaf buds are pure white turning pure green. The flower diameter is about 3-3.5 cm, green in color, with a slender stem, very beautiful. The three outer petals have round, narrow tips and tight edges, divided nest silkworm-moth pollinia, ru-yi (ruyi) tongue,...
Dangzi: Huilan (Cymbidium faberi), lotus-form narcissus petal, a traditional famous variety. A single Dangzi plant has a nice fan-shaped look, but with multiple plants it looks a bit messy, and the leaf tips tend to burn.
Characteristics: Dangzi leaves are about 0.8 cm wide and about 40 cm long, with a semi-pendant leaf posture, graceful and elegant. Leaf buds are pure white turning pure green. The flower diameter is about 3-3.5 cm, green in color, with a slender stem, very beautiful. The three outer petals have round, narrow tips and tight edges, divided nest silkworm-moth pollinia, ru-yi (ruyi) tongue, single-character shoulder, and the flower scape is slender and upright with about 15 flowers per scape. Strong flowering habit, fast propagation. It is a typical small lotus-petal narcissus famous variety among Huilan.
Selected during the Qing Dynasty Daoguang period (before 1865). It was sold from Suzhou to Dangkou on flower boats. At that time, a large clump of wild-collected Huilan grass was gathered, divided into four pieces and pressed into a bamboo basket, with more than half damaged, then taken by boat to be sold. One clump was bought in Dangkou Town and named "Dangzi", and another clump was also bought in Xitang Town and named "Xiaotangzi Xian". The two should be the same plant under different names.
In the book "Orchids" co-authored by the Jiangnan orchid master Shen Yuanru and his son Shen Yinchun, the Dangzi is described as: "Green-shell type small lotus-flower-form bamboo-petal narcissus type.
Wang Shuping, in his "Fifty Years of Orchid-Growing Experience", described the Dangzi as: "Single-character shoulder, lotus form, bamboo petal, ru-yi (ruyi) tongue. Shortcomings: small flower and yellow color."
In "A Brief History of Orchids", the Dangzi is described as: "Small lotus form, bamboo petal, silkworm-moth pollinia, ru-yi (ruyi) tongue, flat shoulder." Other orchid books also describe the Dangzi in broadly the same way.
