As we prepare to head for Sarawak our thoughts we wonder what orchid will be flowering in Borneo in July,. Fortunately the orchid family can be relied upon to provide flowers throughout the year as shown by 365 days of orchids. Most of our cymbidium species flower in the autumn and spring but there are summer flowering species too and this species flowers from July until September.

This small growing cymbidium is native to Vietnam where it grows in cool forests at around 1500m. We find this species very straight forward and reliable with the advantage of flowering relatively quickly from seed. The plant shown in the photograph flowered three years out of flask and is now carrying a seed pod for the next generation. It also won best Cymbidium at our recent Orchid Festival.

The species is quite variable in the size of the flower and the colour of the lip striping which varies from deep red to scarlet/orange. The white of the flowers is very white and always attracts attention.