ORCHID HOUSES. 11 



Cases in which Orchids are sent home ought to be made 

 strong, and roofed with good stout glass not easily broken ; 

 for I have often seen plants spoiled by the glass being 

 fractured. Through an accident of this kind, salt water and 

 cold air get in, both of which are very injurious. All cases 

 should be air and water-tight ; and to prevent the glass 

 being broken, the best thing to place over it is some strong 

 iron wire ; the sash bars ought also to be made very strong : 

 and the case must not be too near heated surfaces or fires 

 in the vessel. I have seen many boxes of plants spoiled by 

 positions of that kind, the leaves being completely dried up. 

 They ought to be placed in as warm a situation as you can, 

 but by no means near any fires. 



ORCHID HOUSES. 



A HOUSE most suitable for the culture of Orchids is the 

 first thing to be considered. In my opinion the best houses 

 are those with span roofs facing east and west. They should 

 not be more than ten or eleven feet high in the centre, 

 seventeen or eighteen feet wide, and about sixty feet long, 

 with a glass division in the centre to separate them into 

 two houses one for plants that come from the East Indies, 

 which ought to be next the boiler, the other for those that 

 come from cooler regions. There ought to be upright sashes 

 on both sides of the house with glass from twelve to fifteen 

 inches high, but not to open. Many Orchid growers object 

 to side sashes and generally recommend brickwork up to 

 the spring of the roof : but that is not, in my opinion, the 

 best plan ; on the contrary, I would advise any one about 

 to build an Orchid house to have upright sashes on both 

 sides and at each end. From experience I have found 

 that Orchids cannot have too much light, which is the 



