Ionizing radiation combined with in vitro tissue culture has been used for development of new cultivars in diverse crops. The effects of ionizing radiation on mutation induction have been analyzed on several orchid species, including Cymbidium. Limited information is available on the comparison of mutation frequency and spectrum based on phenotypes in Cymbidium species. In addition, the stability of induced chimera mutants in Cymbidium is unknown. In this study, we analyzed the radiation sensitivity, mutation frequency, and spectrum of mutants induced by diverse γ-ray treatments, and analyzed the stability of induced chimera mutants in the Cymbidium hybrid cultivars RB003 and RB012. The optimal γ-irradiation conditions of each cultivar differed as follows: RB003, mutation frequency of 4.06% (under 35 Gy/4 h); RB012, 1.51% (20 Gy/1 h). Re-irradiation of γ-rays broadened the mutation spectrum observed in RB012. The stability of leaf-color chimera mutants was higher than that of leaf-shape chimeras, and stability was dependent on the chimera type and location of a mutation in the cell layers of the shoot apical meristem. These results indicated that short-term γ-irradiation was more effective to induce mutations in Cymbidium. Information on the stability of chimera mutants will be useful for mutation breeding of diverse ornamental plants.Plants 2020, 9, 546 2 of 11 breeding [6]. However, development of a new Cymbidium cultivar by means of cross-breeding is time-consuming because of the long vegetative growth stage.Mutation breeding techniques using physical mutagens (e.g., γ-rays, X-rays, and ion particles) or chemical mutagens (e.g., ethyl methanesulfonate, N-nitroso-N-methylurea, and colchicine) have been widely used to develop mutant cultivars in diverse plant species, including food and ornamental crops. In 226 plant species, 3308 mutants, including two Cymbidium mutants, that were predominantly (77.5%) developed using physical mutagens have been registered in the Mutant Variety Database of the joint Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations/International Atomic Energy Agency [7]. Among the diverse ornamental plants registered on the database, the most numerous mutants are those of chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum spp., 274 mutants) followed by rose (Rosa spp., 67 mutants), dahlia (Dahlia spp., 36 mutants), alstroemeria (Alstroemeria spp., 35 mutants), streptocarpus (Streptocarpus spp., 30 mutants), and carnation (Dianthus caryophyllus, 28 mutants) [7]. The combination of treatment with a physical mutagen and in vitro tissue culture has been used to shorten the breeding period of orchids [8,9]. Thus, integration of γ-irradiation and in vitro tissue culture may be an efficient procedure for development of mutant cultivars in Cymbidium.The treatment of seeds, buds (tip/node cuttings), callus, and rhizomes with a mutagen induces chimeras in M 1 plants because mutations are induced in individual cells and regenerated shoots are recovered from pre-existing multicellular meristems [10]. In seed-propagated pl...