ORCHIDS AND EVOLUTION — COSTANTIN. 355 



One of the most skillful propagators of our country, Mons. Maron, 

 after the publication of Mons. Bernard's investigations, said that he 

 succeeded as well with his own method as with that recommended by 

 the latter, this consisting in inoculating the soil with orchid fungi, 

 which he had learned how to separate from the roots and gi^ow in 

 pure cultures. This statement does not seem to have great weight 

 when it is stated that on sending some orchid fungi to an inexpe- 

 rienced amateur, who had never germinated a single orchid, like 

 Mons. Magne, with whom I put Mons. Bernard in communication, 

 wonderful success was obtained. The intervention of science will 

 at least have had the advantage of rendering accessible to many a 

 process which previously had been successfully attempted by only 

 a few. 



Besides, despite the mastery of their art obtained by certain 

 worthy breeders, they still have disappointments, and failures fre- 

 quently baffle the most experienced of them, fortune, on the contrary, 

 often reserving her smiles for unskilled novices. As long as the 

 reasons for the methods they employ are not understood this ought 

 not to be surprising. The production of seed is always meager, and, 

 above all, irregular. One capsule begins to develop; another not 

 until several weeks or even months afterwards. There are a host of 

 anomalies and failures in growth for which an explanation should be 

 sought. Moreover, there is a convincing example which proves that 

 the new methods of cultivation can be a powerful aid to the culti- 

 vator; this is the notable success obtained in the case of PhaZaenopsis 

 Artenvise. Seeds of this hybrid, obtained by crossing Phalaenopsh 

 ctTnahilis^ a variety of Rimstedmna^ with Phalaenopsis rosea^ were 

 sent by Mons. Denis to Mons. Bernard before the capsule which con- 

 tained them had opened. The latter was able to remove the seeds 

 aseptically and place them in a sterilized tube, where no germina- 

 tion took place. Upon introducing a pure culture of a fungus, 

 Rhizoctonia mucoroides^ there was obtained in the tube a splendid 

 germination, the seedlings developing with the utmost rapidity and 

 regularity, so that at the end of 18 months Mons. Bernard was able 

 to remove the seedling and send it to Mons. Denis, who replanted it, 

 and in 1908 (less than 3 years after sowing) the plant flowered.^ It 

 was the first mature plant obtained by the new method, grown with 

 a rapidity that even the most skilled gTowers were unable to attain, 

 for Mons. Bernard's seeding of 18 months had nearly the size of 

 those 3 years old which are figured by the Messrs. Veitch in their 

 excellent orchid manual. 



So by extracting the fungi from the roots anyone can obtain as 

 good and even more rapid germination than that secured by the most 



1 Orchid Review, vol. 17, p. 156. 



