S20 ORCHIDS 



British and otiier Hardy Orchids. 



When planting, the tubers and roots should be buried 

 about 2in. below the surface. The roots should be handled 

 gently and spread out, slightly pressing the soil about 

 them. In dry weather the border must be kept well 

 watered ; the water for those species which are not in 

 loam should be soft or rain water. A mulching of moss 

 or cocoa-nut fibre should be placed on the bed in hot 

 weather. These conditions may be slightly modified if 

 the plants are to be grown amongst stones in the 

 rockery. In the case of the hardy Cypripediums we find 

 that if they are planted amongst hardy Ferns they do 

 best. It is therefore desirable to have a bed made for 

 these so that the Lastreas and other ferns may be pro- 

 vided for : the roots of the Ferns keeping the soil porous 

 and open, they do not suffer so much from wet in winter. 

 The dead fronds also should be allowed to remain to 

 protect the Orchids from frost in winter. Fig. 176 

 represents a batch of these plants near the pond in 

 Mrs. Cookson's garden at Oakwood. 



Should the weather in winter be very wet and the 

 temperature changeable, a covering of boards or lights, or 

 even dead leaves, will protect the plants from harm. It 

 is not the cold but the alternations of mild with cold 

 weather, fogs, and rain, that destroy these plants when 

 left unprotected in an English garden. 



Frame Cidture. — The frame is used by some in pre- 

 ference to the open border, as it is much easier to 

 regulate the moisture and temperature by means of 

 movable lights. Except in winter the plants are left 

 exposed to the air and weather. For such as the Ophrys, 

 which require a good ripening in the autumn by means 

 of drought and sunlight, the lights are a great advantage. 

 In other respects the treatment of plants in frames should 

 be similar to that recommended for those in open beds. 



Pot Ctiltui-e. — Where it is desirable to remove the 

 plants when in flower to a conservatory or a room, they 

 may be grown in pots : these should vary in size according 

 to the nature of the plants, such strong-rooting kinds as 

 Cypripedium and Orchis foliosa requiring a liberal amount 

 of root-room, whilst the Opiirys, Serapias, and others, 

 which have not much root, require considerably less room. 

 It is best to put about five plants of these smaller kinds 



