its blooms are the typical pale pinkish lilac—no different from those found in the 
low-lying scrubs near Brookfield. This change of colour can surely be due only 
to one of two causes: (1) change of altitude and consequent variation in light 
value; (2) absence of some agent in its food—such as iron, manganese, etc., which 
may affect the colouring in the same way that hydrangeas and other flowers are 
said to be affected by the addition or removal of some element to or from their 
soil, But I am inclined to think that it is the lessening of the ultra-violet rays in 
the sunlight of Brisbane that is responsible. 
The principal factors in the growing of Orchids are nutrition, temperature, 
moisture and light, and we must remember always that the importance of any 
one of these factors is relative to the other factors. We cannot say that the feed- 
ing of Orchids is the most important element in their cultivation, nor are tem- 
perature, moisture or light, paramount in importance. We should strive to pro- 
vide a nicely judged scale of treatment for each plant according to its needs and 
according to the conditions available to us. If we restrict our efforts at Orchid- 
growing to those plants whose requirements most nearly meet what we can give 
them, we shall have a vastly higher percentage of success than if we try to grow 
a large range of species without giving consideration to their requirements. The 
fact that we grow Orchids is an indication that we are plant lovers, and it is a 
poor plant lover who will subject a beautiful Orchid to a miserable existence and 
a lingering and painful death just for the sake of including it in his collection. 
There are scores, even hundreds, of Orchids which thrive under quite ordin- 
ary conditions in bushhouses and glasshouses, and, if we restrict our efforts to 
these, we can build up large and interesting collections which will give us worth- 
while results all the year round. We can then leave to those who can provide 
the extra requirements the plants that require specialized treatment. By doing 
this we will save our purses and our self-esteem from some nasty shocks. 
We know that Dendrobiums and Epidendrums are almost all lovers of sun- 
light, and in their natural state grow under conditions where they have the direct 
rays of the sun beating upon them for some hours each day. Cymbidiums, too, 
are light lovers, but they grow either upon the trunk of the host tree, or on 
branches close to the trunk, so that they get ample light, but this is diffused or 
broken by the foliage above them. Cypripediums are mostly terrestrials and tend 
to grow in the jungles of the tropics where their sunlight is broken by the over- 
head growth. There are exceptions, of course. Cypripedium Lowii, for example, 
grows high up on trees like a Dendrobium, while C. Spicerianum is often found 
growing upon rock faces exposed to morning sunlight. Cattleyas, which come 
from the Andes, require greater sunlight than those which originate in the Ama- 
zonian jungles—and so on. Hybrids tend to inherit the characteristics of their 
parents, not only in regard to physical features, but also with regard to cultivation 
needs, These hereditary traits, however, are modified by the artificial conditions 
in which they are raised. But whether your plants are species or hybrids, they 
must be kept clean. If the leaves are coated with a film of dust or soot or scale, 
this film will act as a screen which will prevent the light rays from reaching the 
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