Cymbidium breeding

The two unforgettable names in Cymbidium breeding are that of H. G. Alexander of 'Westonbirt' and Lionel de Rothschild's . To these two gentleman we owe the finest of the early Cymbidium hybrids and for many of the stud palnts are still very much in use. Alexander's greatest contribution was the legendary hybrid , xC. Alexanderi 'Westonbirt' (Cymbidium eburneum x C . insigne ' Westonbirt'). It had lovely large white flowers -characters , all of which were easily transmissible . Due to the partial dominance of its white colour , it produced beautiful pastel shades, when crossed with coloureds . x C. Alexanderi ' Westonbirt' also gave rise to several fo the stud plants which are widely in use now, like x C. Rosanna Pinkie and x C. Balkis .

Apart from these pastel shades , highly coloured varieties were also greatly appreciated. To meet this demand dark reds like x C. Carisbrook, greens like x C. Baltic and amber yellows like x C. Marcia , were produced . Most of the Cymbidium species which figured prominently in breeding today's hybrid forms, come from the Indo-Malayan region , eg. C. eburneum, C. giganteum ,C. lowianum ,C. erythrostylum ,C. devonianum etc.

Miniature Cymbidiums are now very much in fashion . They have an appealing charm and are more manageable in size than ordinary Cymbidiums, which take up a great deal of space in the greenhouse . The species from which the present day miniatures are derived are mostly from Japan and China , with C. pumilum from Japan heading the list . Hybrid miniatures were first produced in England in 1944 (x C. Lois Sander x C. pumilum ) and later in 1955 in the United States (C. pumilum x C. Zebra).