USELESS PSEUDO-BULBS a3 
useless in the economy of the plant. This fact goes to show 
that the old pseudo-bulbs are being supported by the newer 
growths, and, that they are seriously impeding the full 
development of the flower-producing part of the specimen. 
In such cases it is a common thing to see large specimens 
collapse and die off, the decay being traceable to the old 
bulbs in the centre of the plant. It is, therefore, better to 
remove old pseudo-bulbs behind the last three or four 
leading ones, and, if it is desired to retain all leading por- 
tions of a large mass in one pot or pan to form a specimen, 
they should be potted together, when it will be found 
that, given reasonable treatment, they will make better 
specimens than if left in a mass. In the case of varieties 
that need to be propagated, the pieces removed should 
be placed in comparatively small Orchid pans or baskets, 
properly labelled, and in due time useful and often 
valuable specimens may be secured from material which 
would only have been detrimental to the parent plant. 
The same kind of treatment will be found equally bene- 
ficial in the case of garden hybrids which have been cul- 
tivated long enough to have a number of back bulbs. In 
such cases the plants frequently degenerate after the first 
two or three years, until they produce inferior flowers, but 
the removal of the back pseudo-bulbs results in giving the 
flowering growths the full benefit of the root action, and 
consequently the plants again produce flowers of good 
quality. 
Potting time is a very convenient season to give special 
attention to the removal of useless leaves and pseudo-bulbs, 
as the plants can be readily handled when they are out of 
the pots. 
Cc 
