Detailed Explanation of Cultivation Techniques for Chinese Cymbidium Strange Flowers and Crystal Art

A Brief Discussion on the Cultivation of Chinese Cymbidium Strange Flowers and Crystal ArtCultivation From a botanical perspective, ‘‘flowers are modified leaves.” According to this theory, the crystal structures on the leaves of crystal art cymbidium plants should correspond to the petals of flowers, such asCymbidium goeringiithe line art on the leaves often reflects onto the petals as the same form of line art. And in the case of the Chinese cymbidium (Cymbidium sinense), many line art varietiesof the floweralso have line art on the petals, but not every variety's leaf art form is entirely expressed on the petals. Some varieties of Chinese cymbidium andfour-seasonorchiddo not have this characteristic. For crystal art, the result should be consistent with line art. There have been many reports of crystal art cymbidium plants producing flowers with crystal art. But not every crystal art cymbidium plant produces crystal art flowers. This is because not all information within the cell is inherited and expressed, which is also the reason for the theory of cell totipotency. However, one thing is certain: strange flower varieties have the opportunity to evolve crystal art. For example, the traditional varieties ‘Qijian Baimo’ and ‘Tiegu Suxin’ have evolved different crystal arts. Even Taiwan, China's ‘Xiju,’ a strange flower with multiple petals and multiple lips, has also evolved crystal art. From this it can be seen that strange flower varieties may also evolve crystal art, just as strange flower varieties evolve line art. But crystal art cymbidium plants that have not yetfloweredmay also produce various flowers. This is because the art form of crystal art is expressed on the leaves and is determined by the plastids in the cytoplasm, while the genes forfloweringexist in the nucleus, and there is no contradiction between their mutual existence. Moreover, the genes of Chinese cymbidium are highly heterozygous, and various genes that may exist can be expressed under certain conditions. Therefore, the phenomenon of crystal art cymbidium plants producing strange flowers or strange flower cymbidium plants producing crystal art will occur. Cultivation ofcrystalcymbidium plants Cultivation ofcrystal cymbidium plantshas already been comprehensively introduced in many materials. In fact, the conditions required for cultivating crystal cymbidium plants are basically the same as those for cultivating other general Chinese cymbidium, but there are a few points worth noting.

(1) Because the plastids in the crystal structure portion of crystal cymbidium plants are reduced, the utilization of light energy is lower than in other parts, and the temperature easily rises, making the crystal structure portion more prone to scorching. Therefore, a slightly shaded environment is required.

(2) However, crystal art cymbidium has less fibrous tissue, and the surface protective layer is thinner or the cuticle layer is missing. In particular, crowned crystal art is prone to frost damage, so attention must be paid to cold protection in the cold winter.

(3) Because crystal cymbidium plants have less chlorophyll, their self-nutrition is relatively deficient. Extending slightly shaded light conditions is beneficial for photosynthesis, so as to meet the physiological needs of their crystal structures.

(4) The surface protective tissue of the crystal structure is relatively fragile and easily affected by high and low temperatures. Increasing humidity can both stabilize the temperature and prevent excessive evaporation of water from the crystal structure, so as to prevent the crystal structure from being harmed by environmental factors.

(5) Because crystal cymbidium plants lack a cuticle layer in their structure, their buffering capacity against the environment is poor, and pathogenic bacteria are likely to infect them, so disease prevention and control plans are necessary. In addition, pests also prefer to pierce and feed on crystal cymbidium plants. It is necessary to do a good job in pest control while also preventing the spread of viral diseases, and preventing chewing insects or snails from chewing on the crystal structures.

(6) To maintain complete or bright crystal art, it is necessary to physiologically control the transformation of leucoplasts within cells into chromoplasts, especially to control their transformation into chloroplasts. According to this principle, fertilizers that promote chlorophyll formation should be applied as little as possible or not at all. For example, nitrogen should be applied sparingly, because nitrogen is the main element constituting chlorophyll. Some trace elements should also be used cautiously. The concentration of fertilizer should also be applied lightly and thinly to prevent excessive accumulation of nutrients within the crystal structure.

(7) Because the crystal art of different orchid species has different requirements for the growing environment, their cultivation conditions should be emphasized accordingly. For example, the crystal art of Cymbidium goeringii,Cymbidium kanran,Cymbidium faberiand Cymbidium sinense and four-season orchid differ in their temperature and moisture requirements. The former require slightly lower temperatures and somewhat drier cultivation conditions than the latter. Where conditions permit,orchidgrowing sites should be appropriately separated for cultivation. In terms of water control, it should also vary according to the water requirements of differentorchidvarieties. However, during the budding period of crystal cymbidium, water should be more abundant and humidity higher than during other growth periods. This is mainly to prevent the crystal art portions on the leaf sheaths from drying out and sticking together, which would prevent the leaves from extending and affect the opening of new shoots.