Dendrobium nobile: The Golden Hairpin Blooming on Rocks

On the cliffs of Shennongjia’s Houzibao area grows a unique plant. Local herb gatherers call it the unreachable “hanging orchid,” while botanists know it as Dendrobium nobile. Its slender yellow stems resemble the golden hairpins once worn by women in ancient China, hence the name “Golden Hairpin Dendrobium”. This delicate and charming orchid thrives on moss-covered cliffs, too high to reach or even to observe closely. Yet, during its blooming season in May and June, the once-green cliffs become dotted with vibrant red and soft white flowers. The blossoms, as enchanting as water lilies, are a sight to behold from afar but not to be disturbed.

The origin of Dendrobium nobile’s Chinese name “Shi Hu” lies in its medicinal value. Ancient people harvested the stems of Dendrobium nobile from cliffs for medicine, describing them as “slender as grass, four to five inches long, pliable, yet fleshy inside when broken.” Thus, during processing, the stems must be repeatedly kneaded and sun-dried so that the therapeutic properties could be fully released. Even after drying, the stems remained pliable, curling into small spiral “dou” (a measuring vessel used in ancient China), known as “Feng Dou”. Their golden hue and earring-like shape also earned them the name “Golden Earrings.” The character “hu” refers to a large ancient measuring vessel, equal to ten “dou.” The name “Shi Hu” was likely coined because this herb grows on rocks and resembles a “hu” in shape. However, the exact origin of the name remains debated. Li Shizhen, a pharmacologist in Ming Dynasty, mentioned: “Its name is uncertain, but its stems resemble golden hairpins; hence the ancient term ‘Golden Hairpin Dendrobium.’ People of Shu (now Sichuan Province) cultivate it and call it the Golden Hairpin Flower.” This reveals that common folk seldom used the formal name “Shi Hu,” preferring the poetic “Golden Hairpin Flower.”

Dendrobium nobile is an epiphytic orchid that grows on bare rocks. Its fleshy roots, wrapped in the spongy tissue, tightly adhere to rock surfaces. Within this spongy tissue, the plant can absorb and store rainwater, while nourishing symbiotic fungi that fix atmospheric nitrogen and secrete acids to extract nutrients from the rock. This survival strategy evolved in Shennongjia’s biodiverse environment, where each organism occupies its ecological niche. By choosing to grow in barren, perilous places, Dendrobium nobile minimizes resources competition from other plants.

As a historically renowned medicinal herb, Dendrobium nobile has long been overharvested. A saying among herb gatherers goes: “In the herbal trade, nothing surpasses the Golden Hairpin; in the mountain goods trade, nothing surpasses monkey head mushrooms,” implying that Dendrobium nobile is as rare as delicacies. Dendrobium nobile grows extremely slowly. Even though it can draw nutrients from bare stone and moisture from the air, the barren environment limits growth. It grows through sympodial branching, meaning the top of the pseudobulb stops growing, and new pseudobulbs develop from buds at the base of old ones. Usually, only one or two new pseudobulbs form each year, and these very pseudobulbs are the medicinal part. Due to years of harvesting, wild Dendrobium nobile on cliffs has become scarce, and its beautiful blooms in May and June have turned into a rare sight. This plant found a foothold in harsh rock crevices to survive, but now it has been pushed to the brink of extinction by humans.(Text by Fang Jie Reviewed by Jiang Mingxi  Photo by Li Guangmin)

Speice Profile:

Dendrobium nobile

Asparagales

Orchidaceae

Dendrobium

Key Identification Features:

Stems erect, slightly flattened cylindrical, up to 60 cm long; upper part often somewhat flexuous, lower part slender cylindrical, multinodal. Leaves leathery, oblong. Inflorescences arising from nodes on the middle or upper part of leafy or leafless old stems; bracts ovate-lanceolate. Flowers white, upper part tinged pale purplish-red (sometimes entirely pale purplish-red); dorsal sepal oblong; petals slightly oblique, broadly ovate.?Flowering period:?April–May.

Distribution in China: Taiwan, Hubei, Hong Kong, Hainan, Guangxi, Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, Xizang.