February 6, 1866. ] 



JOURNAL OF HOETICULTUKE AND COTTAGE GAEDENER. 



99 



WEEKLY CALENDAR. 



ORCHID GROWING IN LONDON. 



LTHOUOH to tall^ of glow- 

 ing OrcliicLs ill London luiiy 

 seem to many per.soiis, oven 

 those most couversaut with 

 theii- habits, rather Utopian, 

 I hope to be able to show 

 tliat it is not only possible to cultivate these lovely ilowers 

 in the heart of om- gi-eat city, but that, with care, many of 

 them may be flowered as well in London as elsewhei'e : 

 and it is witli the liope that others may talce up tliis m- 

 teresting subject that I am tempted to record mj own 

 experience in the matter, slight though it niaj- be. 



Some time ago ckcumstances compelled me to reside in 

 London for the greater p.art of two years, and as it was 

 impossible for me to live, even there, ivithuut flowers, I 

 deteiToined to try my hand at ciiltivatuig some of my 

 favouiites. Of course I was laughed at by my botanii-'al 

 fi-ieuds. I was told that I should never succeed ; It was 

 impossible to do so : It was waste of time, with many like 

 encouraging remarks, but I had made up my mind to 

 try : I had seen AVavdiaii cases with plants thriving in 

 them, even in London, and I felt convinced that I should 

 succeed. 



But what sort of plants was I to grow ? for I soon found 

 that veiy few flowers long continue in health even in 

 Wardian eases, and in the part of the town where I was 

 residing notliing would thrive without some such pro- 

 tection. Here was a diineidty, but on mentioning it to a 

 friend, he said, '" "Why do you not try your favourite 

 Orcliids'.' I had two in a small case in my olhce in Great 

 Tower Street, wliieh Uved and grew for a long time." The 

 hint was not thron-n away upon me, and I soon found the 

 truth of what he said ; for certainly, excepting Ferns, 

 Orchids seemed to thrive better in a heated Wardian case 

 wliich I had than anj'thuig else, and as I have always had 

 a passionate love for these beautiful flowers, and had been 

 veiy successfid with them m the country, I resolved to 

 devote my spare time to theu" cultiu-e. and see what could 

 be done. 



The first matter to be considered was, where to grow 

 them. In Wardian cases, though they lived and grew a 

 little, they did not thrive to my satisfaction ; besides, I 

 could not have a case large enough to hold many in my 

 window, nor was there sufficient light and air in a room. 

 I therefore determined to try some other plan, and after 

 turning it over in my mmd, I fixed upon the following : — 

 Outside my sitting-room window was a flat space, covered 

 with lead, wliich fonued the top of the doorway, it was 

 C feet by S, siuTounded by a low wall, 8 inches liigh, of 

 brick and cement work on three sides, the house and 

 window fonmng the fourth. This p^ace I fixed upon as a 



No; 254.— Vol. X., New Series. 



favourable one on which to erect a sort of large Wardian 

 case, or small gi-eenhouse, and my window being large, 

 reacliing nearl}' to the ground, I could pass thi'ough it 

 when needful into the miniatm-e house. "Wlien finished it 

 resembled a small lean-to hothouse, (i feet long, .'5 feet wide, 

 feet high at the window, sloping to 2 feet in front. It 

 was heated by hot water from a small boiler in the sitthig- 

 room fireplace, wliich worked uncommonly weU. The 

 follow ing sketch will explain more fuUy my meaning. 



Ventilation was ef- 

 fected by a narrow 

 shutter in front at (/, 

 18 inches long by ti 

 inches ■wide, which 

 could, when required, 

 be shut up perfectly 

 air-tight, and a nar- 

 rower one, of similar 

 construction, in the 

 roof at (/. Inside each 

 of these shutters was 

 a fi'ame, fitting over 

 the space wiiich was 

 left exposed when the 

 ventilators were open, 

 containing six or eight 

 folds of fine network 

 made of w-ool, which 

 coidd be changed as 

 often as necessary. 

 Through this mate- 

 rial the air filtered its 

 way, if I may use the 

 expression, the net- 

 work preventing all 

 soot, blacks, &c., from 

 entering, and per- 

 forming the part of a 

 respu-ator to the case. 

 Even with this pre- 

 caution I found it did not do to give much au' in the day- 

 time, the air then, do what you pleased to it, being un- 

 pregnafed with deleterious matters wliich told in time on 

 the Orchids, so that I ahvays contrived to give air by 

 night, wiien it is purer, particidarly towards early morning 

 before fires are begun to be lighted. I believe this to be 

 a ^ital pohit in gi-owing Orchids in Loudon. StiU, the 

 great point after all is to grow only those plants v.'Mch 

 require the least an-, and tliis I soon found by experience ; 

 some Orcldds, such as the Cattleyas. LieUas. Odonto- 

 glossums, &c., never doing well in town ; wiule others, 

 such as the Aerides, Dench-obiums, Stauhopeas, Vandas, 

 &c., with plenty of heat and moisture, tluiving as well 

 there as an\-where, and floweiing profusely. Their treat- 

 ment was much the same as that wiiich they received in 

 the country Orchid-liouses. excepting that they were made 

 to do with as little air as possible. 



The temperature of the house was. in spring and summer, 

 by day 85°, by night 70° ; late m autumn and in winter, fi.i' 

 No. goo.— Vol. XXXV., Old Series. 



a The case, 6 feet long by 3 feet wide. 



h Window of sitting-room. 



c A glass door, with 6 inches between it 



and the window, in order to prevent the 



drnmp finding its v.ay into tlie room. 

 , d Ventilators. 

 c B')dy of the case, 6 inches deep, filled 



with sand, the bottom being well 



drained. 

 / Hot-water pipe.s. 



