Orchid selection criteria and general terms
Let me tell you about some common knowledge of orchid cultivation and orchid-related knowledge. Here are the selection criteria and general terms for orchids, let's take a look together.
Various parts of orchids have their own names and terms, but some are not specific botanical terms, but are named by orchid enthusiasts themselves. They often judge the quality of varieties based on the different characteristics of each part of the orchid. According to Chinese habits, the selection is very strict, for example, Zhengtonghe, Songmei, Longzi, and Wentai Su are considered as the four great orchid families, and Dayipin, Chengmei, Liumei, and Jin'aosu are considered as the four great huai families, which can be proven. In fact, whether a flower is beautiful or not is related to personal aesthetic taste, not an academic issue. Now, in order to make it easier for everyone to understand the characteristics of the names of various parts of orchids, and to understand some of the selection criteria for orchids by past orchid experts, we specially combine these two aspects to introduce as follows for your reference:
1. Color: The color of orchids is relatively simple and straightforward, not as complex as chrysanthemums. The color of general orchids is best in嫩绿 (light green), second in 老绿 (old green), and the ones that turn from red to green are lower grade. As for the ones with red and purple spotted lip petals, such as wild ones, they are not considered good.
2. Shoulder: In orchids, the upper petal of the three outer petals is called the main petal, and the two petals near the base are called the secondary petals, commonly known as “shoulder”. There are four forms of secondary petals: one is extending upwards on both sides, horizontally flat, called “one-character shoulder” or “one-character frame”, which is superior; the second is uplifting like butterfly wings, called “flying shoulder”, which is even more precious; the third is drooping gradually after fully blooming, called “gradually falling shoulder”, which is of poorer quality; the fourth is drooping immediately after opening, called “falling shoulder” or “eight-character frame”, and even if the petals are good, they cannot be selected.
3. Petal: The petals of orchids are usually considered to be the best in lotus petals, followed by plum petals, and narcissus petals are the next. Ancient people said: “Lotus petals are really rare, eight parts long and four parts wide, the roots are as thin as a gentleman's flower, and the appearance is more lively than Zhang Lang”; folk sayings have: “A thousand Meis are selected for a lifetime, and a single lotus is nowhere to be found”, which shows the strictness and difficulty of collecting varieties. In general, the petals of orchids are considered to be good species if the three outer petals are tightly edged and thick with delicate texture; if they are flat-edged, wide-edged, and the secondary petals are narrow, thin, and upturned (such as bamboo and willow leaves), they are considered inferior species.
The relevant pictures for this topic are as follows:
4.捧 (P捧): The orchid with the捧心 (center of the flower) separated into five petals is called “five-petal separated”, such as Yuanyu, Songmei, Cuwen, etc., which is the most precious. Secondly, the捧心 must be clean or concave inward to form a phoenix pouch shape to be considered qualified. What is commonly known as “soft silkworm moth捧” and “broad Guanyin pouch” both refer to the捧heart that meets this standard. Others, such as the “shoulder-to-shoulder clasp” with the捧heart divided above and merged below, such as “hard silkworm moth捧”, “bean shell捧”, “crab clamp捧”, etc., are all considered inferior.
5. Nose: The nose should be small and flat for the flower to have spirit. If it is a big nose, then it cannot fit together, commonly known as “open skylight”, and cannot be considered a good species.
6. Tongue: The tongue is the lip petal, located below the nose. The shape of the tongue is usually round and short, and the color on the tongue is called “苔 (tai)”. Green and white苔 are considered the best (for example,春兰 (spring orchids) value “snow tongue” the most, while 蕙兰 (Huai orchids) value “green tongue” the most). In addition, ancient orchid enthusiasts named many names based on the shape of the tongue, which also became selection criteria. For example, “big ruyi tongue”, “Liu Hai tongue”, “big round tongue” are all considered superior; “small ruyi tongue”, “square plate tongue” are considered middle-grade; as for those偏 (biased) to one side, “crooked tongue”, “dragging tongue” that does not stick out, and other “pointed tongue”, “narrow tongue”, “scale hook tongue”, etc., are all considered variant low-grade.
7. Red dots: The red dots on the orchid tongue are highly valued in Chinese folk selections. Generally,春兰 (spring orchid) tongues with red dots, either as a single point, or in a mass, or in the shape of an ingot, or in a distribution pattern like the character 品 (pin), are considered superior; but if the red dots are spotted and distributed irregularly, they cannot be selected. Most of the 蕙兰 (Huai orchid) tongues are scattered with fine dots, which are very different from春兰 (spring orchids); the color dark purple is the worst; if there is a clean and bright red color, it is considered a top-grade variety.
8. Pedicel: The pedicel should be thin and long. Some春兰 (spring orchids) have pedicels over 10 centimeters long, which are of course the most spiritual; some have very short pedicels, called “dwarf feet” varieties, and even if the flowers are good, they don't look proportional. As for the pedicels of 蕙兰 (Huai orchids), there are two forms: one is thin and long, called “lamp wick grass”, which is relatively precious, such as the new Jiangnan top grade; the other is short and rough, called “wooden stem”, such as Chengmei, the flowers are not bad, but they always lower their ornamental value. In addition, the color of the pedicel is also considered a selection criterion, for example, “ Guangqun Fengpu” records: “purple stem and blue flower is the best, blue stem and blue flower is second, purple stem and purple flower is third”.
9. Apex: Refers to the tip of the flower bud just opened. Its changes are many, generally considered that the plum petal apex like a lotus seed, the lotus petal apex like a crescent moon, the narcissus petal apex spherical, white bordered, are relatively precious. At the same time, the apex that converges inward is better than the one that flips outward.
10. Shell: Shell is the bract. In addition to the green shell, red shell, and red-green shell mentioned above, there are also white shell, gray-white shell, silver-red shell, and so on. The shell is usually considered the best in green, purple-red is not bad. In terms of texture, the ones that are delicate and thin and hard are the first; the ones that are thin and soft are called “rotten clothes” and are not worth selecting; but if the shell of 蕙兰 (Huai orchid) is thick and hard and has bright colors, it can also meet the selection criteria. “Lan Hui Jing” records: “the shell has high and low needs to be carefully evaluated, generally the Qi color needs to be bright, the thin and soft should not be picked much, the thick and hard still need a clear color road”, this is the reason. Usually, the shell of lotus petals is short, and the shell of narcissus petals and plum petals is long.
11. Vein: The thin and long条纹 (stripes) extending through the top of the shell are called “vein”. The color, length, and distribution of these stripes also vary greatly. Like the gray-white shell, white shell, silver-red shell, etc., all show these stripes, which are often used by folk as selection criteria and identification marks for varieties. Usually, the veins of lotus petals are thick, and the veins of plum petals and narcissus petals are thin.
12. hemp: The short and closely arranged stripes on the shell are called “hemp”. Hemp is divided into “white hemp shell”, “red hemp shell”, “green hemp shell” according to the color of the shell itself. “Green hemp shell” shells, depending on whether they are unearthed early or late, are distinguished. Some shells that are short and unearthed early are called “shallow mountain green hemp”. Among these varieties, if the hemp pattern is sparse and the tip of the bract does not fit together, leaving a gap, it is commonly known as “sparrow beak empty head”, which is the most precious. Conversely, the ones with long shells and unearthed late are called “deep mountain green hemp”. Among these varieties, the ones with glossy shells and red-green colors like flower snakes are said to be rare species.
13. Grass素: Experienced orchid enthusiasts can determine whether it is a素 orchid just by looking at the color of the shell and the characteristics of the veins before the orchid blooms, called looking at “grass素”. There are two methods of identification: the first is to look at whether the shell is bright, such as white shell with green veins, or green shell with green veins, or shells with a powdery appearance, all of which belong to the素 orchid category. The second is that the veins are short and do not penetrate the top, and the color of the shell is dark and dull, or black veins or other杂色 (mixed colors) are found, all of which belong to the荤 orchid category.
14. Grass insect: The young and small buds of orchids, often in the form of insect cocoons, are called “grass insect”. It is generally believed that the grass insect shape similar to a lotus seed is the characteristic of plum petals; the olive shape is the characteristic of lotus petals; the pen tube shape belongs to the narcissus petals, but there are also plum petals.
15. Bell arrangement: This refers to the form and arrangement of the Huai orchid flowers on the pedicel. In ancient times, one pedicel with nine flowers was called nine bells, considered as “regular”; seven or eight bells as “sub-regular"; more than ten bells or less than seven or eight bells are considered inferior; there are also more than二十 (twenty) bells, which are considered bad species. As for the order of flowering, it is also different. Folklore believes that opening from bottom to top is better than opening from top to bottom.
16. Arrow extraction: When the orchid first opens from the shell and呈现 (presents) a flying arrow shape, it is called “arrow extraction”. At this time, if the shell tip has a pouch, edges, or hair-like appendages, it must be a rare species with large petals. The petals that gradually open wide after the initial opening are better than those that open wide at the same time.
17. Sheath: Refers to the inner wrapping of the flower bud, commonly known as “small package clothing”, which is a deformation of the leaf stalk. The shape of the sheath is considered valuable when it is tall and large. All梅 (plum) shape or lotus shape narcissus have a浓滑 (rich and smooth) luster different from ordinary flowers.
In summary, there are many terms for orchids, and opinions vary. Here are just the main ones, with some popular and easy-to-understand explanations, and to identify varieties, one must continue to observe and practice. It can be seen that the depth of folk orchid technology and the richness of experience in our country are indeed astonishing.
Have you understood the detailed introduction of orchid selection criteria and general terms introduced to you above?