This week’s Orchid Wise Orchid of the Week is… Cym. Valley Splash
Parentage: This week’s Orchid of the Week is a cross between Cym. Vivacious x Cym. Hazel Tyers
Registered: 1991
The reason why it’s our Orchid of the Week:
It’s a trip back down memory lane for me this week, folks — to one of the first plants I ever owned, now long gone, though.
Valley Orchids in South Australia bred and registered this plant, so it’s one most would recognise: Cym. Valley Splash. In all its cultivars, it was immensely popular back in the day. ‘Comet’, for example, was a very pretty bloom with a pink splash on the petals and sepals. Plus, good flower counts on upright spikes were the order of the day, and a striking labellum topped the flower off nicely! On top of that, all of the cultivars seemed to show a heavy influence from Cym. Hazel Tyers.
Some of the other cultivars you may recognise are: ‘Prolific’, ‘Awesome’, and ‘Aurora’. And all had their attractions!
In the background of our Orchid of the Week we can find plants such as Cym. Balkis and Cym. Sussex Dawn, so some well known plants in the mix.
Back then, Valley Orchids sat just 30 minutes from where I lived. I often wandered the thousands of plants in the tunnels there! In fact, I sourced the bulk of my early collection from them.
Cym. Valley Splash has since proven popular enough that breeders have used it as a parent 48 times so far, with Cym. Kimberley Splash the most well known of the progeny. Meanwhile, another well-known progeny is Cym. Valley Champion, and its feathered version is always in huge demand — so if you can find a piece, expect to part with a lot of hard-earned cash!
Our Orchid of the Week image was supplied by Valley Orchids.
Finally, tracing the plant’s heritage through Orchid Roots reveals its primary species ancestors are Cym. insigne, Cym. lowianum and Cym. hookerianum.