538 THE GARDENER. [Dec. 



often it carries its devotees beyond the limits of good taste. If a love 

 for that which is interesting, singular, and curious in form and life, of 

 the most exquisite Mendings and tintings, strikingly distinct and bril- 

 liant in colouring, be good taste, then assuredly no family of plants 

 can gratify and whet it more than that of Orchids. It must be admitted 

 that many of its members when not in bloom are not graceful, but 

 ungainly and rustic — not much better at times than a bundle of bare 

 stems — as, for instance, the large genus of Dendrobiums ; yet some of 

 these bear among the most beautiful of flowers, compensating at one 

 season for their rather uncouth aspect at another. To the lovers of 

 the curious and interesting in form, what other family can provide so 

 much gratification as is to be found in a great number of the Orchid 

 family — such, for instance, as Peristeria elata, Angraecum sesquipedale, 

 Anguloa Clowesii, Cypripedium caudatum, not to enumerate dozens 

 more? What can excel or equal, both in interesting formation and 

 exquisite colouring, such as Cattleya oxoniensis (if not the most 

 splendid of all Orchids, certainly one of the most splendid of Orchids, 

 and very fragrant), Cattleya labiata and its varieties, and Dendrobiums 

 too numerous to name 1 ? Then there are the delicate tints and Mend- 

 ings in the Aerides and Saccolabiums, the elegance and colouring com- 

 bined in the best types of Odontoglossum Alexandra?,, O. pescatorei, 

 0. cirrhosum, the massive size and delicacy of colour of O. vexillarium, 

 the purity of the grand old Coelogyne cristata, not to mention Phalae, 

 nopsis and many others as celebrated for their lively colouring as for 

 their remarkable formation. 



A pretty good case could surely be made out for a taste that revels 

 in such plants, and its growth and extension is a matter to be desired ; 

 and such is likely to be the case, seeing that our swift steam-vessels 

 and the short cuts now available make it possible to land Orchids on 

 our shores in much finer and fresher condition than was possible at one 

 time not very far distant. As a whole, Orchids can now, no doubt, be 

 purchased at lower prices than fifteen or twenty years ago. Still superb 

 varieties of popular genera never were higher priced, simply because 

 the number of buyers of " crack " varieties are now more numerous ; 

 and considering the wealth of the country now, few things offer a better 

 investment from a commercial point of view than first-rate varieties of 

 Orchids. 



A circumstance which has to a considerable extent of late induced 

 many to begin their culture, is the fact that some of the very finest 

 tropical Orchids have been grown under much cooler treatment than 

 was at one time dreamed of. Many of the most beautiful hail from 

 the high lands of the Americas, and not only thrive, but thrive by far 

 the best, in a temperature not much above what is necessary for a 

 mixed collection of greenhouse plants. Thus their beauty can be 

 much more enjoyed by all, and by many who cannot for many minutes 

 put up with a roasting tropical heat. 



