THE NURSER Y LIST. 237 



growths to each portion. This method may be practiced for 

 the increase of phaius, masdevallia, sobralia, ada, the ever- 

 green section of calanthe, and all of similar habit. 



In nearly all those kinds where the pseudo-bulbs are united 

 by a procumbent rhizome, such as occurs in cattleyas, the 

 process is slower. It seems to be natural for these plants to 

 continue year after year, producing a single growth from the 

 old pseudo-bulb. To obtain additional ' 'leads, " the rhizomes 

 should be cut through in early spring, two or three pseudo- 

 bulbs being reserved to each piece. A bud will then push 

 from the base of each pseudo-bulb nearest the division, and 

 a new lead is formed. The pieces should not be separated 

 until this is well established, and three years may sometimes 

 be required. Laelia, catasetum, coelogyne, lycaste, cymbid- 

 ium, zygopetalum, odontoglossu-m, oncidium, miltonia, etc., 

 are treated in this manner. 



Cuttings. This method is available for those kinds with 

 long, jointed stems, like dendrobium and epidendrum. Just 

 before the plants commence to grow, say in February, the 

 old pseudo-bulbs are cut up into lengths, and laid on a moist, 

 warm surface, such as on a pan of moss in a propagating 

 frame. Young offshoots will shortly appear at the nodes, 

 and when large enough are potted off with the old piece at- 

 tached. This plan may be used also for barkeria and mi- 

 crostylis. 



It is well to remember that in any method of propagation 

 where the pseudo-bulb is divided, the vigor of the young 

 plant is proportionate to the amount of reserve material sup- 



Elied it. However suitable the external conditions may be 

 )r growth, it is for some time entirely dependent for susten- 

 ance on the old piece from which it springs. Dendrobium 

 Phalcenopsis is a case in point. If a pseudo-bulb is cut into 

 say three pieces, it will take at least two years for the 

 young plants to reach flowering strength, but frequently by 

 using the entire pseudo-bulb, we can get in a single year a 

 growth quite as large as the old one. 



The treatment of young orchids should be founded on 

 what suits the parents. As a rule, however, they require 

 more careful nursing, and some of the conditions must be 

 modified. Drought, intense light and cold draughts must be 

 avoided. For many orchids, especially those from equatorial 

 regions, where the atmospheric conditions alternate between 

 saturation and intense heat and dryness, it is necessary, in 

 order to induce flowering, that nature, to some extent at least, 

 should be imitated. With young plants, by whatever method 

 they may be obtained, the supply of water must only be re- 



