30 okchid-geower's manual. 



POTTING EPIPHYTAL OECHIDS. 



WHEN the season of rest is over, many Orchids will require re-potting, 

 but in our practice we have not confined ourselves to that time only. 

 No season can absolutely be determined on as the proper one for this 

 operation. The months of February and March — that is, after the resting 

 season, just before they begin to grow — are very suitable for potting 

 some of them, or for those Orchids which start at a latei' period of the year 

 this operation may be retarded. Those that do not require potting 

 should be top-dressed with good fibrous peat and moss, the old soil being 

 removed from the surface without breaking the roots of the plants. 

 This operation affords the means of getting rid of many insects which 

 harbour in the old soil or crocks. The pots should be thoroughly cleansed 

 from the mould, moss, and dirt, which are too often seen covering them. 

 Cleanliness is one of the greatest aids in the successful growth of Orchids. 

 Previously to potting, the plants should not receive any water for four 

 or five days. 



Some species should be potted at a somewhat later period, that is, 

 just as they begin to grow. All the species of Phajus, Oalantlie, Dendiro- 

 hium, Stanhopea, Gyrtopodium, Brassia, Miltonia, Sohralia, Bletia, 

 Oncidium, and many others, require this treatment ; whilst those of 

 Laelia, Cattleya, Saccolabium, Aerides, Vanda, and similar plants, should 

 be potted just before the commencement of their growing season. 



The chief point to be attended to in all potting is that the pots should 

 be well drained, the best material for drainage being potsherds or 

 charcoal. Before potting, be particular to have the pots perfectly clean 

 and dry, inside and out, and the broken potsherds should be washed. 

 After this is done, select a pot in accordance with the size of the plant, 

 but do not give too much pof^room. Some plants require shifting once 

 a year, while it may not be necessary to shift others oftener than once 

 in two or three years. If a plant becomes sickly or soddened with wet, 

 the best way to bring it back into a healthy state is to turn it out of 

 the pot or basket, and wash the roots carefully with some clean tepid 

 water, cutting off such of them as are dead ; and then to repot it, not 

 giving it much water till it begins to make fresh roots. The best pots 

 are those in ordinary use. Some employ slate pots, but they are not so 

 good for Orchids as those made of clay. 



