ON MAKING ORCHID BASKETS. 27 



the Cattleyas and Laelias, succeed well in a cool room or house, in 

 which their flowers keep fresh for a much longer time. We have kept 

 Laelia majcdis in a cool room for four or five weeks, and L. flava, under 

 similar circumstances, will also keep a much longer time in blossom than 

 if left in the warm house. 



When the flowers begin to fade, the plants should be taken back to 

 the Orchid house, where they may be placed at the coolest end, with 

 plenty of shade ; they should be kept in this position for about ten days, 

 for if they are at once exposed to the siin they are very apt to become 

 scorched. 



Those flowers which it is desired to preserve should not in any case 

 be wetted, as this will cause them to become spotted, and they will then 

 soon decay. This is a very important point. 



ON MAKING ORCHID BASKETS. 



BLOCKS and baskets are most natural receptacles for growing the 

 true air plants, such as Vanda, Saacolabium, Aerides, Angraecum, 

 PhalLt,eno;psis, &c. When planted in baskets or on blocks, these send out 

 their roots much more vigorously into the air, and suck up the moisture, 

 whereas, if their roots are covered too much, they are very apt to rot. 



Various materials are used for forming baskets. Sometimes they are 

 made of copper wire, which is very durable. Others are made from the 

 ordinary material in use for making flower pots— these are very good 

 indeed, and have a neat appearance. We have some very good ones of 

 this description ; they are round, about six inches deep, with holes in 

 the bottom, and made of the ordinary pottery clay ; they are, moreover, 

 very useful, as they last a long time, and the plants do well in them. 

 We have also for some years used small earthenware pans of different 

 sizes for many kinds of Orchids with very beneficial results; they have 

 three holes in their sides, and are attached to the roof of the house by 

 means of wires ; they are deep enough to allow of sufficient drainage 

 to be put in them, as well as peat or moss, and we find the plants do 

 well in them, much better than on blocks, as they do not dry up so 

 quickly. We have saved many delicate plants in this way. We, how- 



