January 19, 1906 



HORTICULTURE 



55 



Odontoglossum crispum 



A correspondent wishes to know how our plants came 

 through the past liot summer — a very reasonable and 

 pertinent request — and as many have asked, it is 

 thought best to answer through the medium of Hor- 

 ticulture. 



The preceding years had been very favorable to sum- 

 mering the plants; the heat being less than usual and 

 rains frequent, many gave credit to these conditions for 

 the improvement seen in the collection, and it certainly 

 did help materially. We find, however, that the sun 

 the plants enjoy from October to April builds up strong 

 tissue in the bulbs and leaves, these becoming bronzed 

 by the exposure even the smallest bulbs producing 

 bloom, and the plants go through the heat as never 

 before when confined to structures that did not admit 

 much sun in winter. This seems to be the key to suc- 

 cess in odontoglossum culture; other aids are also bene- 

 ficial, as the use of the Cookson formula in the water all 

 the time, using osmunda fibre of the brown grade alone 

 for potting material, leaving out moss altogether un- 

 less it can be made to grow green. 



Last year k dozen more plants were tried again with 

 oak leaves properly prepared and mixed through the 

 fern root, but these all showed signs of distress in sum- 

 mer, not one keeping up with the vigor of their previous 

 years, so we think this system of potting pretty well 

 exploded. When one comes to learn of the large quan- 

 tities of osmunda roots sent to England for use there 

 of late, and the success attending its use when properly 

 tested, we begin to believe that the best possible pot- 

 ting medium is at our hands at first cost. 



The following clipping taken from the November 

 issue of "Orchid Keview" is worthy of reprint here; 

 the writer, Mr. J. Mackay, is the orchid expert in 

 charge of Mr. Chamberlain's famous collection and is 

 writing of a noted trade collection as follows: "We 

 next visited the odontoglossum house; and on entering 

 remarked on the fine healthy appearance of the plants; 

 they had just recently been potted in osmunda fibre, 

 surfaced with moss, and from the vigorous appearance 

 of the young grow'ths this material is to be recom- 

 mended as a potting medium. I have had occasion to 

 use it largely in conjunction with polypodium fibre this 

 last two years and find it suits the cattleyas, Islias and 

 hybrids, dendrobiums and odontoglossums, so much so, 

 ' that peat and leafy soil are now seldom used. Mr. 

 Mansell * * * js quite in raptures with this material 

 and predicts a great future for it as a compost for 

 orchids." 



The writer was among the first to use the roots of 

 Polypodium vulgare over twenty years ago, where, in 

 Ireland, large mats of it coiild be torn off the oak trees, 

 about three inches thick and pure brown fibre, so that it 

 is similar in texture to our osmunda, except that it is 

 entirely free from earthly particles. The writer above 

 notes that the combination is f:uited to all the genera 

 cultivated here excepting the cypripedes, which perhaps 

 do better than any others in it. 



In the same issue of Orchid Eeview we note that even 

 English cultivators have been sufferers from the hot 



weather last summer. They might copy with advan- 

 tage the use of a jet of cold water, sprayed through the 

 walk with pressure into a fine mist. A half-inch pipe 

 is run along the floor with a valve at the entrance door 

 and a nozzle screwed on such as used for spraying roses, 

 adjustable and the spray regulated by turning it round. 

 This arrangement keeps the- temperature 20 degrees 

 cooler than outdoors. When it reads 95 degrees we 

 iiave 75 degrees with a circulation of air with it that 

 keeps the foliage moving gently ; this is turned off at 

 night, and costs about 5 cents a day for water consumed. 

 We began by using the nozzle on the hose, but at times 

 this would squirm and portions of the house and plants 

 become drenched before we were aware of it. 



Our only failure to be recorded is the loss of all the 

 seedling odontoglossums. We had one that was a year 

 old, and this with all raised from seeds sown last spring 

 seemed to melt away during the hot months. We are now 

 experimenting wholly with the Mexican odontoglots 

 crossed with or on to the more sensitive Colombian 

 species, and hope in time to attain a measure of suc- 

 cess. It appears that the large trade growers here are 

 again taking up the culture of cool orchids in thou- 

 sands, and are succeeding well, the flowers moreover 

 finding a ready market; thus the art of cultivating 

 these most beautiful of flowers which once was on the 

 decline, has rapidly been improved upon and bids fair 

 now to assume as large a proportion as the collectors 

 can guarantee for over here we still have to depend on 

 importations to supply the plants. These are becom- 

 ing scarce in the older localities; there are plenty more 

 places doubtless which a resident could locate, but in 

 these days of "quick trips" exploration is impossible on 

 the part of the collector. 



About Carnation Britannia 



Editor of Horticulturk : 



Dear Sir — We notice your remarks in your issue of 

 Dec. 8th, with reference to the carnation Britannia. 



Doubtless you Americans regard with suspicion a 

 variety raised this side, and perhaps with good cause, 

 when you have so many grand things in your country. 



However, we have in Britannia a sort which includes 

 all good qualities of the American varieties, and is in 

 addition, we believe, superior to any American scarlet 

 3-et sent out. 



At any rate we are prepared to back it against either 

 Victory or Eobert Craig, and we believe these are the 

 two best American sorts of this color. 



These three varieties were shown at the first meeting 

 of the Winter-flowering Carnation Society and Britan- 

 nia came first with flying colors, receiving also the gold 

 medal of the society for the best variety in the show. 



Britannia is absolutely a non-burster, and we are 

 producing more of this variety than of either Victory 

 or Eobert Craig. Yours faithfully. 



