Cymbidium Sarah Jean 'Karen'

Cymbidium Sarah Jean 'Karen' is a cultivar from the well-known Sarah Jean grex, created by crossing Cymbidium floribundum with Cymbidium Sleeping Beauty. This form is noted for its free-flowering habit and graceful, arching spikes that cascade with numerous small blooms. The flowers are typically soft yellow to cream with subtle golden tones, carrying a lip marked with red or burgundy, and appear in large numbers during late winter and spring.

The compact size and prolific nature of 'Karen' make it well suited for pot culture, where multiple spikes can be displayed together. Inherited traits from its parentage give it a dependable blooming cycle and the ability to produce spikes even on younger plants, a feature that has made the Sarah Jean line popular among growers.

Care Tips

• Light: Provide bright, indirect light; gentle morning sun helps with spike initiation and flower quality.
• Water: Keep evenly moist during the growing season; reduce slightly after flowering but avoid allowing the mix to dry completely.
• Media: Use a coarse, free-draining Cymbidium mix such as medium bark with perlite or charcoal.
• Fertiliser: Apply a balanced orchid fertiliser every 2-3 weeks in growth; switch to a bloom booster as spikes emerge.
• Temperature: Best with cool nights of 10-12 °C and days up to 25 °C; a strong day-night difference is key for abundant flowering.
• Repotting: Repot every 2-3 years in spring after flowering, when new shoots are just beginning to develop.