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GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



(OF AMERICA) 

 Devoted to the Science of Floriculture and Horticulture 



■ Vol. XXIV 



MAY. 1920 



No. 5 I 



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Things and Thoughts of the Garden ^^JJ^ 



THE ONLOOKER 



a&t^ftmuA. 



UXL'SL'AL interest is being displayed in Orchids 

 at the present time in many quarters by reason of 

 the restrictions imposed on plant importations by 

 the Federal Plant Quarantine Act of last year. As is so 

 often the case, experts on the subject do not entirely 

 agree as to the probable effect of this measure on Orchid 

 culture in this country, some being inclined to think it has 

 received a serious set-back, while others profess to be- 

 lieve that scarcely any inconvenience will be noticeable 

 because of the large number of seedlings which will be 

 raised. Undoubtedly the work of hybridizing and rais- 

 ing Orchids from seeds will be greatly stimulated. Enough 

 has been done already to prove that here is a field which 

 offers possibilities of fascinating interest. Money, time, 

 and patience are the chief requisites, of which the last 

 is by no means least when we realize that one must wait 

 for five 3'ears and upwards for final results. A wonder- 

 . fully instructive exhibit, showing the various stages and 

 time required in the development of an Orchid from the 

 seedling to the flowering stage, was that arranged for 

 A. C. Burrage at the Boston Flower Show in March. 

 It was a happy thought carried out to perfection and 

 worthy of wide imitation. .\t this show, which will long 

 be remembered for the high standard of excellence of the 

 exhibits, as well as the unique displays of new azaleas, the 

 (Jrchids were easily the leading feature. The wonder- 

 ful collection of hundreds of varieties from the green- 

 houses of A. C. Burrage at Beverly, ^lass., made a most 

 remarkable display, and the eliforts made to achieve a 

 naturalistic effect represented a real triumph in the art 

 of staging Orchids to advantage. It was an ajjpropriate 

 occasion on which to launch the National Orchid Asso- 

 ciation and this new organization we hope to see wax 

 stronger and stronger as time goes on. 

 * * * 



In spile of the fact that Orchids have been recently 

 described by a government official as "a mere bagatelle" 

 of the tloral world, the Orchid family must still be re- 

 garded as one of the most important in the vegetable 

 kingdom. Certainly no other has made such a fascinat- 

 ing aj)i)eal to what might be termed the popular imagina- 

 tion, which views this family through an atmosphere of 

 romance and mystery. This has been partly created by 

 the thrilling stories of the adventures and the perils which 

 have been braved by Orchid collectors, together with 

 the fancy prices at which some s]5ecimens have changed 

 hands. But aside from all this we find in the Orchid 

 faniilv some of the most beautiful of Nature's products, 

 showing not only a great variety in the color but also a 

 marked individuality in the structure of the flowers. The 

 ])lants, too. show a great difference in the size and hal)it 

 of sjrowth. The largest known is said to be Graiii- 



iiuitophyllinii spcciusiiiii with stout pseudo-biubsas much 

 as ten feet in length, a plant seldom seen under cultiva- 

 tion. The long climbing stems of Vanilla planifolia, from 

 the fruit of which is extracted oil of vanilla, have been 

 known to exceed one hundred feet in length, while at the 

 other end of the scale are some kinds of very small 

 stature, their ultimate height being measured in inches, 

 of which the lo\-ely Sophroiiitis grandiflora might be cited 

 as an example. Their geographical range is a wide one,. 

 as they are found the world over except in the ver}' cold- 

 est and the very dryest regions. In the humid at- 

 mosphere of the tropics they flourish in the greatest pro- 

 fusion, many kinds attaching themselves by long 

 adventitious roots to the trunks and branches of forest 

 trees and obtaining most of their nourishment from the 

 atmosphere. In fact the majority of Orchid species 

 grow this way in their natural habitat and so are classed 

 as epiphytes. Those which grow upon the ground, ter- 

 restrial kinds, are found mainly in the temperate re- 

 gions. Several kinds are to be fovmd in the woods of 

 the northern states, mostly in the neighborhood of peat- 

 bogs, though sad to say, they are fast disappearing from 

 some localities because people cannot resist the tempta- 



. tion to ruthlessly uproot them when in bloom. ^lanv a 

 line clump has laeen brought in from the woods in full 

 beauty and planted in the garden with fondest hopes 

 which were never realized. Loveliest of all the native 

 Orchids, most would say, is the showy Lady's Slipper, 

 Cypripediiini spectabile. It is well worth a special ef- 

 fort to try and establish a clump of this handsome plant 

 in the garden, though it must be admitted that it is not 



, in every garden that a suitable place can be found. Given 

 a cool shady nook and ])lanted in a good deep pocket of 

 "boggy" soil where the roots can keep moist and cool 

 there is a fair chance of being rewarded with success, 

 which in this case is sweet indeed. The right time to 

 jilant is when growth has finished for the season and the 

 leaves ha\-e begun to fade. 



* * >:: 



.\t one lime Orchids were considered exceedingly dif- 

 ficult plants to handle and a certain air of mystery seems 

 to have been prevalent regarding the details of their cul- 

 ture. This undoubtedly arose because of the fact that 

 in the early days of their introduction very little was 

 known about them beyond the fact that they were na- 

 tives of tropical countries. Those which came from the 

 mountainous regions of those countries were treated ex- 

 actly the same as those which flourished in the stifling 

 heat of the jungle, and consequently many thousands 

 were literally stifled to death in over-heated and ill- 

 ventilated greenhouses. Naturally they were looked upon 

 as plants which onlv ihe verv weallhv could .-ifford to 



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