Wish I knew what Cym. i'ansonii really is!

[MrCym]

Despite all the pompous Cribb/Kew pronouncements, this orchid is clearly not a lowianum. Many reasons. Much smaller pseudobulbs with a totally different shape and narrow foliage where lowianum is broad. The kicker for me is that the foliage is dirty. By that I mean it tip-burns and marks up constantly unlike lowianum. Did I mention the typical i'ansonii spike also tops out at around a dozen flowers?

So I suspect some eburneum influence maybe long ago. It selfs and breeds fairly true though there are some variants quite superior to the FCC/RHS form. One of the great advantages of the species is its reliably late blooming season. I just cut the spikes off this week and they were still fresh. Unfortunately I don't have a tetraploid version so we are limited in what we can do in hybridizing with it. Bert Ruiter had some useful seedlings of it crossed with Mighty Mouse 'Minnie' 4n that came reliably late with bright colors and plenty of flowers. I think we have it with Green Santa 'NH' 4n just to see what it might do for some warmer-growing lines. The flowers always carry the stark white lip that is not at all a characteristic of lowianum and it passes that trait on.

[Ross]

Andy has really opened a can of worms with this one, I like to stick to RHS and Kew Gardens as my authority but with iansonii playing a major role in early development of cymbidiums through the primary hybrid Ceres ( iansonii x insigne) and also the part played by Pauwelsii ( primary hybrid lowianum x insigne) it would have been best if the TAXONOMISTS had left iansonii as a distinct specie or a natural hybrid if they could prove something. As far as a hybridizer is concerned it is probably best to treat iansonii and ceres as individual identities. Ross

[MrCym]

Ross, it's even more complicated than that! I remade Ceres in a 4n form and it looked just like all the true Ceres such as Ceres 'Girrahween', though bigger and heavier substance as one would expect. However, Ceres 'F.J.Hanbury' which is the plant used for 90%+ of all Ceres registrations was in fact a deliberately mislabeled Ralph Sander! So only the true Ceres has any i'ansonii ancestry. Dishonest people, some of those old Pommie orchidists!

[sabredance]

Ross, have you read the book Orchid Fever? It puts some perspective on the level of trust you may wish to provide your orchid authority. Note that Mr Cribb left the employ of the RHS following exposure.

[Ross]

The Worms in the can are getting bigger. The West Australian cymbidium judges are supposed to use Cribb's book as the cymbidium BIBLE, I have hardly had a glimpse of it. Cymbidium Mania by Graham and Sue Guest is always used as a first reference but it cuts out at 1995. One has to have some reference so I will use RHS and Kew Gardens with caution, I do know that there are those who miss- label for their benefit. The pictures of the species on Kew Gardens Web-Site at least gives some idea of what the species look like. Ross.

[Gary S]

So where do we go to from here with regards to the supposed experts at the RHS in the UK! and even here in Oz at the RBG in Canberra, all they seem to be interested in these days is getting their name in print by continually changing the names of orchid species!

Are they also doing that in the US?

[BarryZ]

I have a Cym. I'ansonii in my collection thanks to Mr. Cym's sib. cross of 'Geyserland' (AE 1841).

The leaves of my plant are quite ugly. I also grow a few lowianum varieties and they bloom earlier as mentioned above.
I also have a hard time accepting that Cym. I'ansonii is a variety of lowianum.

I'm surprised that the sib. cross did not yield tetraploids.

BarryZ

[Nigel]

Cymbidium Mania by Graham and Sue Guest is always used as a first reference but it cuts out at 1995.

Ross, once you have acquired fame and fortune, you just sit back and bask in the glow. 1995 is only 5+5+5+4 years ago. (Still one toe to go.)

[Nigel]

Mr. Cym. I have been investigating this for you.
I have spoken to a respected orchidologist and EBay seller here, and as near as I can gather, Cym. i'ansonii is $12 for a 68 mm pot with a single lead, $29.99 for a bulb and lead, and $49.99 for a near flowering size plant. ( Pelorics add $40. ) No sales to USA as you are all amateurs and wannabes.

[Julie]

Guilty as charged if what you mean by wannabe is that I "wannabe" just like Andy.