148 



TTTE GUIDE TO NATURE 



INTERIOR OF A HOUSE WITH HUNDREDS OF ORCHID PLANTS IN FULL BLOOM. 

 Under the benches note the quantities of fresh arrivals from the tropical forests recuperating 



from the long journey. 



give one the impression that he is in an- 

 other country or perhaps on another 

 planet. Instead of the usual planting of 

 seeds or cuttings, here are the unpack- 

 ing of huge shipping cases that have come 

 directly from South America, the ar- 

 ranging of their contents in boxes and 

 traps, and the placing of these on long 

 tables or hanging them from the roof. 

 Nearly all the processes and arrange- 

 ments are different from those of the 

 ordinary greenhouse ; even the light is 

 different, as all the glass is painted. 



These statements, however, should not 

 convey the impression that the care of 

 orchids is difficult. On the contrary the 

 method seems simpler and the care less 

 anxious than with the generality of or- 

 dinary house plants. The manager 

 stated that while the sale is largest in cut 

 flowers for the city florists, yet there is 

 considerable demand for entire plants in 

 small, single boxes or in small lots for 

 the amateur who wishes to raise his own 

 orchids and to watch the unfolding of 

 their marvelous flowers. 



Our readers will recall that Mr. Lager 

 had a brief article on orchids in The 

 Guide to Nature for April, 1910. The 

 following quotation from that article is 

 worth repeating : 



"An erroneous impression is that these 

 plants grow in swamps. This is not the case 

 for no plants are more particular than the 

 orchids in regard to pure air. Most of the 

 species sought after are epiphytes or air plants; 

 that is, the plants are usually found growing 

 on trees where they attach themselves to the 

 trunks or limbs in light and airy positions, 

 rarely in dense shade. They do not take any 

 nourishment from the tree, wdiich serves 

 merely as a means or object to which to cling, 

 the roots spreading and clinging over the sur- 

 face of the bark and absorbing their food from 

 the atmosphere. 



"The orchids are found chiefly along the 

 edges of the forests or along the banks of 

 streams and rivers, in fact anywhere where 

 openings in the forest occur. 



"The Cattleyas rarely occur below two 

 thi usand feet above sea level and seldom go 



