two or more flowers. Flowers are about four inches in width. The sepals and the 
two smaller petals are narrow and pointed and stand out above the broad lip. 
This is one of the very few pure white flowers known, there being no suggestion 
of any other colour in any part of it. This purity and the size of the flowers 
make it a desirable addition to any collection. 
The climate of Ecuador is naturally equatorial (as the name implies), Summer 
and Winter are practically unknown, the temperature range being only 3 to 5 
degrees lower in midwinter than in midsummer. The minimum temperature is 68° 
and the maximum average 96° Fahr. They can be grown in an ordinary bushhouse 
in Brisbane during the midsummer months, but should be moved under glass as soon 
as Winter approaches. In the South they need glasshouse treatment in Summer 
and hothouse conditions in Winter. In North Queensland (in the warm parts) 
they could be expected to do well under bushhouse treatment. 
As regards water. They should never be allowed to become dry. In the Winter 
sufficient applied and overhead water to keep the compost damp and the bulbs 
and leaves unshrivelled may be given them, and in the Summer the water can be 
fully applied. They require plenty of light and will not flower under shaded 
conditions, 
CATT CE Ys 
One of the most important genera, and certainly the most beautiful of all the 
orchid family. All the species are of Central or South American origin and 
range over very diversified conditions as to elevation, temperature and rainfall. 
Some are found 10,000 to 12,000 feet high on the Andes, where the temperature 
falls below freezing point in the Winter, while others again flourish in the dense 
jungles which fringe the banks of the Amazon, Rio Negro, Paranha, and other 
northern South American rivers. They generally grow on the lower branches of 
trees on the mountains (or even on rocks or cliffs) and thrive, with their roots 
swathed in ever soaked moss. Hence they are exposed to the full force of the 
sunlight through the rarefied air, and to all the winds that blow. In the tropical 
jungles, however, they are usually found high up on the trees where they can 
get the light which is so essential to their welfare. 
The Cattleyas have been the subject of much attention on the part of the expert 
hybridisers in the great orchid houses, and to-day there are many thousands of 
wonderfully beautiful hybrid plants whose parentage in many cases goes back 
through numerous generations of hybrids. Nowadays the hybrids are more easily 
acquired and therefore more usually grown than the natural species. Although 
this intensive hybridisation (not only between species of Cattleyas alone, but 
also with the allied genera, Laelias, Brassavolas, Epidendrums, Bletillae, Calanthes, 
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