Cymbidium flowers too green?

[varda.elentari]

I bought a miniature Cym labelled as 'Sleeping Angel' which is supposed to have white flowers with almost no colour on the lip. But when my plant blooms it produces light green flowers and a pinkish lip. Might be mislabeled but is it possible for low/high light levels to make flowers greener?

Many thanks in advance!

[Dimples]

White on a flower can start out green/green-ish and fades over the first couple of days after opening. I have a harlequin Phal that opens with the white areas very green tinted at first. I don’t know if temperature can influence green like it can with reds/purples. Hopefully someone else will know that part.

[Roberta]

Nearly all of my white Cyms open on the green side, becoming more white as the flowers mature. If there is any tendency toward pink the amount of color can definitely be influenced by light, probably temperature. There are some pink species in the ancestry of this hybrid, so it's very possible to have some color show up where not expected.

[varda.elentari]

Thank you both for responding.

The last time it bloomed the flowers stayed green unfortunately so I doubt they will become whiter this time but only time will tell. Any ideas whether I should try more/less light or higher/lower temperatures?

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by varda.elentari

Thank you both for responding.

The last time it bloomed the flowers stayed green unfortunately so I doubt they will become whiter this time but only time will tell. Any ideas whether I should try more/less light or higher/lower temperatures?

I doubt that manipulating the conditions will make much of a difference. Genetics are complicated... if this is a seed-grown plant (not a clone) the various parents can have influence that isn't quite as predicted. (One ancestor, Cym lowianum, is very green. Others are pink... the sum is likely to give mostly white but not necessarily exactly)

[varda.elentari]

Makes sense. Thanks Roberta!

[Roberta]

I looked up the details in Orchidwiz... It is Cym Sleeping Dawn (yellow, but with very complex ancestry that could contribute who-knows-what) by Cym Olymilum (white with pink lip and at least one cultivar has pink on the midrib of the petals) So I can see where a lot of variation is possible though the cultivars shown in OW are very white.

If cultural factors might change the result, you COULD try moving to California I'd vote for genetic complexity, though...

[varda.elentari]

I didn't think of looking up the ancestry so that's good to know for next time.

Haha my Cyms would love the California climate but I couldn't bear it I'm afraid. The hot and humid summers here in southern Ontario are bad enough for me!