Existing comment:
Cymbidiums:
For many centuries in China, cymbidiums were the most desirable orchids, prized especially for their delicate fragrance and gracefully arching leaves. Connoisseurs regarded the blossoms -- smaller and more subtly colored than the vivid varieties we are familiar with today -- as less important.
The Chinese philosopher Confucius (551-479 BC) admired the cymbidium's gentle yet enveloping scent, which he compared to wise and virtuous men, whose good qualities influence others without being oppressive.
Even today, many orchid-lovers in China esteem variegated leaf forms even more than the flowers. |