8o8 



Gardening for Amateurs 



Disa grandiflora. 



iana x ignea), Rushtoni (ignea X race- 

 mosa), and Booking hybrid (cucullata X 

 veitchiana) are of exceptional merit. Mas- 

 devallias are grown at the warmest end of 

 the cool house, and may be repotted either 

 in February or September in a mixture of 

 peat, osmunda fibre, and sphagnum moss 

 in equal parts, with which are incorporated 

 a few crushed crocks to keep the whole in a 

 porous condition. Flower-pots are employed 

 for all the strong-growing kinds named above, 

 but for the smaller species shallow pans are 

 preferable. When the plants become bare 

 in the centre they should be divided, the 

 leafless portion being cut away, and repotted. 

 The Masdevallias need to be kept moist all 

 the year round. 



Miltonia. None are so largely grown as 

 Miltonia vexillaria and its varieties. This 

 popular plant has large flat flowers, usually 

 lilac -rose deepening to dark rose, while the 

 broad two-lobed lip is generally darker than 

 the sepals and petals. M. Roezlii is similar 

 in growth, but the flowers are white with 

 purple blotch at the base of each petal. 

 The former blossoms in May, and the latter 

 in the autumn, while the beautiful hybrid 

 from these two, named M. Bleuana, is inter- 

 mediate in every way. All should be grown 



at the cool end of the intermediate house, 

 and repotted during the months of August 

 and September (except M. Roezlii, which is 

 best repotted in spring), in the same kind of 

 mixture as advised for Odontoglossum, with 

 the addition of a few partly decayed oak- 

 leaves. Miltonias are more or less surface- 

 rooting, and the best receptacles are fairly 

 deep pans without side holes. If the stages 

 are low, the plants ought to be raised near 

 the roof glass by means of inverted flower- 

 pots or stands. As equable a temperature as 

 possible must be maintained throughout the 

 year, and the plants must never be allowed 

 to get very dry. 



Odontioda. No cool Orchid house is 

 up to date without a few of these beautiful 

 plants. They are the result of intercrossing 

 the orange-scarlet Cochlioda noezliana with 

 various Odontoglossums, and they are as 

 easily grown as the latter. All the flowers 

 are more or less reddish in colour ; they 

 are produced at intervals all the year 

 round, but the best show is secured in April 

 and May. A few of the most noteworthy 

 from an amateur's point of view are O. 

 Bradshawiae (C. noezliana x 0. crispum), 

 0. Charlesworthii (C. noezliana X O. harry- 



Laelio-Cattleya. 



