184 HOT-HOUSE — AIR PLANTS. ^December, 



crimson ; it is in the mornings ojilt/ delightfully 



fragrant. 

 OndcJium crisjmm, brownish copper color, and profuse 



flowering. 

 Oncidium pajnlio, bright yellow, spotted with rich brown. 

 OncuUum luridum, flowers of a brownish-green. 

 ^Rendnthcra coccinea, a very superb scarlet flowering plant, 



but does not bloom very freely ; it growls in moss, 



and must be suspended in a pot or tied to a piece of 



stick. 

 Stanhbjjia yrundiflbra has delicate, white, sweet-scented 



flowers. 

 Stanhbjna insujnis, yellow and white, spotted with purple, 



and delightfully fragrant. 

 Vanda Roxhiirghii, flowers pale yellow. 

 Zi/gopetalums, all very beautiful flowering, generally of a 



yellowish green color, spotted with brown. They 



require to be kept in a hot dry atmosphere. 



Orchideous ejyiphytts generally grow upon trees, in the 

 recesses of damp tropical forests, establishing themselves in 

 the forks of the branches, and even upon rocks, stones, or 

 decayed trees. Shade, therefore, is essential to their wel- 

 fare; consequently, never permit them to be exposed to 

 violent sunshine. They require but little water at the roots, 

 provided the atmosphere they grow in is very humid. The 

 best soil for them is a sandy, turfy peat, containing a large 

 portion of fibrous matter; mix with this pieces of pot-shreds 

 or cork, and be careful not to place the plant deep in the 

 pot; they will also grow on blocks or sticks of wood. 

 Although we use and prefer small boxes (about six inches 

 square) made of cork, in which they grow finely and bloom 

 profusely. With some of the strong-growing kinds, we use, 

 in addition to the above soil, a little leaf-mould, using always 

 plenty of drainage. The house we cultivate them in has au 

 eastern aspect. Shade can easily be given to them by having 

 creepers trained up the rafters of the house, or an occasional 

 large plant, placed in such a situation as will afford most 

 shade during mid-day; and it must be observed, that, 

 although the plants are fond of moisture, they never thrive, 

 except the water has a free passage from their roots. 



