Colour Forms:
It is worth noting that there are actually two white forms of this species.
Orchid (Cymbidium insigne 'Album'), commonly referred to as
Cym. insigne var. album (as this is the name it was awarded under), is white but is not actually a true alba (i.e. it still produces anthocyanins).
A true alba (which despite the bad Latin is usually referred to as "insigne alba" to differentiate itself from the earlier white strain) has been in use for several decades and more recently, another alba form has been discovered in the wild and may be introduced into cultivation.
The blushed lip variety of
Orchid (Cymbidium seidenfadenii) is also often confused with the white form of
insigne and a number of the photos in OrchidWiz are examples of this confusion.
Foliage:
Cym. insigne is one of the few species that has long, fine foliage (the related
Orchid (Cymbidium seidenfadenii), both varieties of
Cym. erythraeum, and
Cym. wenshanense are examples of others). The leaves on this species tend to be more brittle/easily damaged than most other Cymbidiums, so the plant will benefit from growing in an area that is more protected from the wind.
