Looking Back at Shenhua: The Complete Archive of the Variety's Development
Shenhua winning the Special Gold Award at the Xinchang Orchid Show on March 2, 2008Looking Back at Shenhua ---- Complete Archive
Destined for Xinchang
Many years ago, by chance, I accompanied a friend to Xinchang to see the petrified wood. My friend made a huge haul, while I discovered what would become the largestwild-collected orchiddistribution center in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. After that, from November to March of the following year, I rushed to Xinchang almost whenever I had free time. Even today, many years later, Chen Jiang, a friend I made on my very first trip to Xinchang, still says, "You rascal, once winter comes you'd practically want to live in Xinchang, but once the season passes, you can't be found even with a gun..."
First Encounter with Shenhua
At the time, in the eyes of the farmers digging orchids in Xinchang, Chen Jiang was already a legend. Whenever something good came down from the mountains, they would call him to come look. And this man's greatest wish was to find a new lotus-petal orchid, and he truly had a fate with lotus-petal orchids. In the spring of 2001, he showed me Qiangang He (Qiangang Lotus). I told him, the flower is a lotus petal, but the plant is not what I would call a lotus-petal plant. Chen Jiang laughed and said, "The standard lotus-petal plant you're talking about, I have one too." With that, he brought out a tiny plant -- the future Shenhua. 2 shoots, about 5 or 6 cm tall. I took one look: "It's a Huangqiu (Global)." Chen Jiang laughed and said, "You idiot, look more carefully. It might be a plain-color lotus. The buds are plain-colored. Someone has already offered me 5,000 yuan, and I won't sell." I said, "You're the idiot. A gamble plant, a tiny plant, and you're selling it for 5,000? How much does your Qiangang He go for?" He just smiled and said nothing. Looking closely at this thing, all upright leaves, it did look a bit like Huangqiu, but the plant's leaf carriage wasn't as good as Huangqiu. So I needled him: "Even if it opens as a lotus petal, the petals won't be very wide." He said, "What I'm gambling on is a plain-color lotus." "Then gamble away." I put down the plant and went to admire Xiaoyao...
A Brush Past Each Other
Two years later, in March 2003, a big snow fell in Jiangnan, closing the roads. I couldn't get to Ru'ao, so I sat in Chen Jiang's home, looking at aCymbidium faberistrange plant. As we chatted, the conversation suddenly turned to that lotus-type gamble plant. Chen Jiang said many people had their eyes on this plant and wanted to put down money to gamble on it. I said, "I know, didn't you tell me last time?" Chen Jiang said someone had already offered 20,000. I said, "You Xinchang people are truly crazy. Even things with rounder heads than this open as ordinary flowers, let alone this one. Lotus petals are that easy to gamble on?" Now it seems it wasn't the Xinchang people who were crazy, but that my eye wasn't sharp enough. I didn't know this little kid would grow up to be a peerless beauty. And at the time, if I really wanted to get a division, it shouldn't have been difficult. Alas, fate was not yet come.
Never Got to See It
Suddenly, I heard that at the Zhuji Orchid Show, Chen Jiang had entered a lotus -- Shenhua -- and it opened beautifully. But I could never squeeze out the time to go see it. When I finally made it to the Wuhan Orchid Show, I went in and out of the exhibition hall three times and just couldn't find this flower. I even called Chen Jiang to ask for directions, and still couldn't find it. Anyway, I'd been disappointed by new lotus-petal orchids too many times and held no hope. If I didn't see it, so be it. Back in Shanghai, I gradually forgot about it.
Four Trips to Xinchang
Friends around me kept hearing me talk about how many wild-collected orchids there were in Xinchang, and they all asked me to take them there once. At Chen Jiang's home, the huge color photo of Shenhua caught everyone's eyes. Everyone photographed Shenhua's flower buds over and over, and so more orchid friends made the trip to Xinchang again. At the time, an old painter wanted to take that pot of five shoots withflowersback to Shanghai, but I stopped him. After all, at such a high price, with only a photo to go on, the risk was too great. Besides, it was about to bloom, so better to wait a bit longer.
February 21 was the day of the Wenzhou Orchid Show, but as soon as I heard Shenhua had opened, we rushed to Chen Jiang's home on the morning of the 19th. The flower was brought out from the bathroom, just forced open, the stem basically flat against the ground. What a delicate lotus petal, just opening, shorter than the first day in last year's photo. I took countless photos. Then on the afternoon of the 22nd at the National Orchid Show, I saw Shenhua again. On the 28th I saw photos of Shenhua from the Yangzhou Orchid Show online. Sure enough, the stem rose higher and higher, the petals opened wider and wider, while the column stayed tightly clasped throughout, and the shoulders basically never dropped. With such form, such flower retention, I could not miss it again. On March 1, I finally brought Shenhua home from Xinchang...
Shenhua in bloom, 2007 photo
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Photo of first opening on February 19, 2008
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Shenhua at the Wenzhou National Orchid Show on February 22
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2008 flower form
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Shenhua winning the Special Gold Award at the Xinchang Orchid Show on March 2
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