900 



HOETICULTUKE 



December 27, 1913 



Phalaenopsis Aphrodite 



The frontispiece of this week's issue of Horticul- 

 ture represeiits a nice group of Phatenopsis Aphrodite, 

 a native of the Ishmd of Luzon, Philippines, where they 

 are found growing on low trees, usually along the edge 

 of small streams. This would indicate a warm, moist, 

 partly shady situation and these conditions the culti- 

 vator of these useful orchids must try to imitate, avoid- 

 ing extremes in either direction. I know they have a 

 bad reputation in regard to their behavior under culti- 

 vation, and to a certain degree not without reason. But 

 there are a good many other orchids more difficult to 

 keep alive and growing for a number of years than 

 Phalffinopsis. The plants shown in the picture have 

 been here nine years and they have never failed to make 

 a good display every winter from November to March 

 with a few occasional sprays through the whole season. 

 New imported plants, once established, gi'ow and 

 flower with the greatest vigor for several years and, if 

 given proper attention, indefinitely. Once in a while one 

 will go off (and that in a hurry), hut this is usually 

 the grower's fault and not the fault of the plant. The 

 house in which the plants are growing here is an old 

 fashioned curvilinear structure, 25 x 20 feet, covered 

 with ground glass. The Phalaenopses are all suspended 

 about a fcot from the glass on wires stretched the whole 

 length of the house; eight rows of the larger plants 

 being suspended over the center table which is occupied 

 with anthuriums, ferns and other shade and moisture 

 loving plants; then there are four rows each over the 

 two side benches, these being again used for other 

 plants, such as ferns, begonias, eypripediums, etc. By 

 growing tiiese plants in the same house beneath the 

 Phalaenopsis, assures at all times a nice moist atmos- 

 phere. The house is heated by hot water and plenty 

 of pipes run under both side-benches as well as the 

 center table; this allows at all times a gentle heat with- 

 out having to get the pipes overheated and thereby avoid- 

 ing that dry, parched atmosphere which is so condu- 

 cive to breeding thrips, red spider and other pests. 

 The gi'ound glas;*, which as a rule is not to be recom- 

 mended for orchid growing, suits the Phahenopsis to a 



, T as they seem to enjoy a little shade even in winter. In 

 suipraer cloth shades are used as soon as the sun warms 

 up the plants, rolling them up after the sun leaves the 

 glass. The temperature in winter is kept as near 65 

 degrees as possible at night with a rise of 10 degrees 

 to 15 degrees during the day. The house is damped 

 down once a day, usually in the morning, when the 

 plants on benches are watered and syringed at the same 

 time. In cloudy weather the floors only are damped 

 down good. 



j\s a compost one may use either moss, osmunda fibre 

 or both together, but if the moss cannot be kept alive 



, and growing, then fibre alone is the best thing to use, 

 i(^j dead moss will soon spell dead roots and the conse- 

 quences thereof. The plants must be kept free of insects 

 at al]._ times by frequent fumigating with some good 

 insecticide and an occasional sponging if necessary. 

 Watering must be done with great care at all times 

 aid especially during the short days of winter. Never 

 )yater a plant unless you are sure it is dry, for although 

 Phalaenopses have no psoudobulbs in which to store 



up moisture, they can stand a good drying out, espe- 

 cially in winter without suffering any harm. Ventilate 

 on all favorable occasions, preferably from the bottom if 

 the house is provided with bottom ventilators. 



Nciugatucli. Conn. 



Sports and Reversion 



Along down through the ages a great deal has been 

 oecomplislied for us by accident. It is safe to say that 

 most of all the good that has come to cultivators in the 

 w ay of new varieties, has happened. By way of example, 

 it took seven years "for the "Student" parsnip to be de- 

 veloped from the wild type of the wayside. This was 

 accomplished by a member of tlie faculty and students 

 of the only Agricultural College then existent, and the 

 Student parsnip is still recognized. Gardeners often 

 scold at the signs of reversion to type visible when seeds 

 are sown and the results are poor, forgetting that all the 

 good we have had is due to the uncertainty of things 

 seemingly fixed. We all know of plants that have been 

 .seemingly a^ iuimutabie as tlie days, until someone dis- 

 cerns a sign of variation, and this is the opportunity of 

 ihc cultivator wlu), being wise to the situation, takes ad- 

 vantage and finally pi'oves up with new forms of value 

 for decoration of gardens or food for the race. 

 • Some years since, the writer was speaking to a gather- 

 ing of which one was a preacher, the argument being 

 that the tendency of all things was downward, hence tlie 

 need of uplift. The preacher turned the tables very 

 cleverly by saying that wo expected too much from a 

 type recognized as such, liut obviously artificial. 



A lady once asked the meaning of the word "sport" 

 as used by gardeners and, at first thought, there was 

 hesitation. Freak would bo the word, but does not con- 

 tain the possibilities inherent. Wo owe so much to the 

 vagaries of nature either in the dwarfing of things or 

 otherwise, it really seems we need another term or defi- 

 I'ition. The change of color in the flowers amounting 

 sometimes to albinism is an illustration, but whatever 

 the sport, break or freak is, the unseen influences at 

 work would make it appear to be an accident, and these 

 are numy to those who have eyes to see. 



Eogues therefore are to be expected and not scolded; 

 we are dealing with a product and the more valuable it 

 is, the jnore prone it is to revert back to a former gen- 

 eration, perhaps even to the type plant. 



.\ colored gentleman once remarked that the white 

 man was very uncertain. If we paraphrase this and say 

 that ]ihints are sensitive, have in fact senses, the changes 

 wo see, either of progression or retrogression, are easily 

 understood. A modicum of adversity will surely bring 

 maturity quickly, and a plentitude of food, moisture, 

 and season ahead will tend to make plants forget that 

 there ever was a season of rest or adversity. It is well 

 known that, in India, vegetable seeds have to be im- 

 ported annually. There is no difficulty in getting seeds 

 there from the various vegetables, but all prove to be 

 rogues when grown the first generation. In Alaska, e-x- 

 cellcnt crops can be grown of temperate kinds in a few 

 weeks, showing that there is a great adaptability — sense 

 in a way — to plants of economic value. 



.Ml nf u« have seen weeds that came into beincr late 



