Houseplant · Orchidaceae
Cymbidium Orchid
Cymbidium
Give it bright light and cool fall nights, and the cymbidium pays you back with long, arching sprays of bloom.
Bright indirect
Every 5–7 days
50–86°F · 10–30°C
USDA 10–12
Overview
Ever heard the cymbidium called the boat orchid? It's one of the easier orchids to keep happy indoors. It grows from chunky storage stems called pseudobulbs, and from those come long strap-shaped leaves and arching flower spikes that can stay in bloom for weeks across late winter and spring. Unlike a lot of orchids, it's terrestrial at heart, so it lives in a loose bark mix instead of clinging to a tree.
So what's the catch? The cymbidium has a thing for the cold. It needs a stretch of cool fall nights before it'll set its flower spikes, which is exactly why a healthy plant kept cozy and warm all year often gives you lovely leaves and zero flowers. Nail the seasonal rhythm, bright light year round plus that autumn cool-down, and the blooming pretty much handles itself.
Honestly, it's a forgiving plant once you've got its two quirks down: it likes its bark moist but never waterlogged, and it actually prefers being a bit snug in its pot. Look after it and a single clump will stick around for years, getting wider and flowering more freely each season.
Care
The short version: bright indirect light all year, a bark mix that stays moist but never soggy, and a run of cool fall nights to bring out the blooms. Feed it weekly through the growing season at a weak dilution, and only bother repotting every couple of years.
Light
Cymbidiums want bright indirect light, with strong full light in winter and bright filtered light in summer so the leaves don't scorch. And if yours skips flowering? Too little light is the second thing to check.
Water
Water it well with tepid water every 5 to 7 days, keeping the bark moist but never soggy, and always let the extra drain off. You're going for damp, not wet, because water sitting at the roots is the quickest way to end up with rot.
Soil
Pot it in a bark-based orchid mix that drains freely, not regular potting soil, which just smothers the roots. A slightly acidic pH of 5.5 to 6.5 suits it, and the chunky bark keeps air moving around down there.
Temperature
Cymbidiums handle a wide range, somewhere around 50°F to 86°F (10°C to 30°C). What really counts is the seasonal swing, since a stretch of cool fall nights is what tells the plant to set its flower spikes.
Humidity
Shoot for 50% to 70% humidity, which is more than most rooms have in winter. A pebble tray or a humidifier nearby does the trick, and steady airflow keeps those damp leaves from turning into a pest and rot problem.
Feeding
Feed it weekly from spring through fall with a balanced fertilizer cut down to quarter or half strength, and do it right after watering so it never lands on dry roots. Then ease off through winter while growth slows down.
Pruning
There's no real pruning to deal with. Once the blooms fade, cut the spent flower spikes back to the base, and pull off any yellowed or dead leaves to keep things tidy and airy.
Repotting
Only repot every 2 to 3 years, in spring after flowering, because cymbidiums actually bloom better when they're a little crowded. Bump it up when the leading pseudobulb hits the pot edge, the roots crowd or escape, or the old bark's broken down and stays wet.
Size & spacing
A grown clump stands 1 to 4 feet (30 to 120 cm) tall and spreads 9 to 35 inches (23 to 90 cm) wide, with the leaves and arching spikes making up most of that height. Give it a spot where those spikes can arch out without bumping into stuff.
Troubleshooting
Most cymbidium headaches come down to one of three things: not enough light or warmth at the wrong time of year, the usual houseplant pests, or a pot that's staying too wet. Find what matches what you're seeing below, and jump on it early before a small setback costs you roots.
Mushy blackened roots and a soggy crown
This is root rot, and it shows up when the medium stays too wet, usually because old bark has crumbled and quit draining. Pop the plant out and check the roots: firm and pale means healthy, brown and mushy means it's gone. Snip off the dead ones, repot into fresh bark, and just water a little less from here on.
Fix:
- Remove rotted roots and repot into fresh well-draining bark medium
- Reduce watering frequency and ensure free drainage
Plenty of leaves but where are the flower spikes?
Got a cymbidium that grows like mad but never blooms? Nine times out of ten it's missing its cool fall nights, that drop between day and night temperatures that nudges the spikes into action. Dim winter light doesn't help either. Hand it strong seasonal light plus a stretch of chilly autumn nights, and the spikes show up.
Fix:
- Expose to cool fall nights with a marked day-night temperature drop
- Increase light to full winter light and bright filtered summer light
Speckled, yellowing leaves with webbing or a sticky film
Seeing fine speckles and a bit of webbing? That's usually spider mites, and soft little bugs with a sticky coating point to aphids instead. Both like to tuck in on the undersides of leaves and the fresh new growth. Rinse the leaves off, wipe the bugs away, and follow up with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil until they're done bothering you.
Fix:
- Rinse foliage and wipe off pests
- Treat with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil, repeating as needed
Toxicity
Good news if you've got pets or kids: the cymbidium is non-toxic. The ASPCA lists orchids as safe for cats, dogs, and horses, and that holds true for the other animals around the house too. Sure, a curious pet that grabs a bite of leaf might get a quick stomach upset from the roughage, but there's no actual poison to stress about.
Safe for
People · Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds
Cats None
Cats are fine here. If one chomps a leaf, the worst that'll happen is a quick upset stomach from the roughage, and that's it.
Dogs None
Dogs are good too. A nosy chewer might end up with a bit of mild, passing tummy trouble, nothing more.
Horses Safe
Horses have nothing to worry about. There's no toxin in cymbidium leaves that could hurt them.
Rabbits Safe
Rabbits are fine around it, but it's not really food for them, so keep it as a neighbor and not a substitute for their greens.
Livestock Safe
Cattle, goats, and sheep won't be poisoned by this orchid at all.
Birds Safe
Pet birds can hang out right next to it, since there aren't any toxic compounds in the plant.
People Safe
It's harmless to people, kids included. It's just not something you'd grow to eat.
Although non-toxic, eating large amounts of any plant material may cause mild, temporary stomach upset.
Varieties
Cymbidiums come in hundreds of species and hybrids, everything from cool-growing wild types to award-winning crosses bred for their color and shape. Here are a few that are worth getting to know.
Cymbidium erythraeum
It's a cool-growing species that's so reliable in the garden it picked up the RHS Award of Garden Merit.
Cymbidium lowianum
This big one throws out long arching sprays of green flowers, each with a red-marked lip, and it's got an Award of Garden Merit too.
Cymbidium Sarah Jean gx 'Ice Cascade'
It's a white-flowered hybrid that cascades, so it looks great when it's allowed to spill over the edge of a raised pot or shelf.
Cymbidium Tiger Tail gx
An Award of Garden Merit hybrid that people grow for its patterned blooms that just keep coming reliably.
How to propagate
At home you make more cymbidiums by division instead of from seed, basically splitting one grown-up clump into a few new plants.
DivisionModerate
Spring, after flowering and at repotting · 1-2 years to re-establish and flower again
When a clump gets crowded, just divide it in spring, right after it finishes flowering and you're already repotting anyway. Make sure each piece holds onto at least three healthy pseudobulbs and a leading growth, since that's the stored energy it needs to bounce back. And don't rush it, because a fresh division usually takes one to two years to settle in and bloom again.
Myths
All orchids are poisonous to cats and dogs.
Nope, not true. The ASPCA lists orchids as non-toxic to cats, dogs, and horses, and cymbidiums are right in that group. The worst a pet gets from chewing a leaf is a mild, short-lived stomach upset.
Orchids are parasites that live off other plants.
Not even close. Cymbidiums are terrestrial and semi-terrestrial orchids that grow in their own bark medium and make their own food through their leaves. They've never taken a thing from a host.