20 THE ORCHID REVIEW. [JANUARY, 1914. 
: VENTILATION is an important factor in Orchid culture, and the 
ventilators ought to be opened an inch or so on all favourable occasions, 
but always on the leeward side of the house. 
CALANTHES.—Several of these beautiful winter-flowering Orchids, such’ 
as C. vestita rubro-oculata, and luteo-oculata, the pure white C. Harrisii, 
and C. Veitchii, will now be past their best, and after the scapes are 
removed they will need a decided rest till growth begins in the spring. 
Some allow them to remain in their pots during this period of repose, but if 
stage room is scarce they may be shaken out of the old soil, and, after 
cutting away a portion of the roots, place them in boxes with some silver 
sand around the base. A cool structure is necessary, and the atmosphere 
must be tolerably dry. An ideal spot is a shelf in a vinery, or where the 
temperature is not likely to fall below 50° Fahr. The late flowering C. 
Regnieri may be kept moist at the root till the flowering season is over, 
when it can be treated in the same way as the others. This is a splendid 
Calanthe, and should be chosen by growers near large manufacturing towns, 
where fog occasionally plays such havoc among the earlier-flowering kinds. 
ZYGOPETALUM MACKAYI, as the scapes are removed, may be repotted in 
a mixture of loam and osmunda fibre. During the hot summer months 
this species should be accommodated in the cool division, but when the 
spikes are showing, a few degrees more warmth is beneficial. All the 
Zygopetalums belonging to this group are vigorous and strong rooting, and 
ought never to be permitted to get into a starved condition. 
CyYPRIPEDIUMS.—These useful winter-flowering subjects will require 
attention towards the end of the month, and any that are in a pot-bound 
state must be repotted and divided into several pieces if the variety is 2 
choice one. Where it is not desired to increase the stock they may be 
placed in a receptacle two sizes larger, without much disturbance at’ the 
base. Cypripediums, especially those of the insigne type, are of easy 
culture, and make ideal plants for the amateur. Where good fibrous loam 
is procurable it should form the chief ingredient in the rooting material, 
the other constituents being good quality peat or osmunda fibre, with a 
sprinkling of finely-crushed crocks. The pots must be well drained, and 
the plants kept moist at the root throughout the year, although for a few 
weeks after being disturbed a little more care is necessary. Ifa house oF 
division is set apart for these Cypripediums the temperature should fluctuate 
between 55° and 60° Fahr., and the atmosphere kept fairly moist. C. 
Fairrieanum, so far as I can gather, does not respond any too readily to the 
conditions prevailing in our Orchid houses, and we seldom see such fine 
examples as when it was re-introduced a few years ago. It has been tried 
in various positions, but with little success, and. it would be interesting if 
growers will give their experience with this charming little Cypripede. 
