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r Che Orchid Review 2 
0. i VoL. XXIII. JOLY, t9F5. No. 271. 
Boise | OUR NOTE BOOK. Fee] 
HE article on ‘‘ Minute Bulbophyllums”’ (pp. 189-190) reminds a. 
correspondent of the remarkable characters of an Orchid collection, 
and one that was more obvious in olden days than at present, namely, the 
enormous number of plants that can be successfully grown in a small 
house. In the early days there were collectors of Orchids who prided them- 
selves on the varied character of their collections, which at that time often 
consisted of a large assemblage of species, and were grown quite as much 
because of their absorbing interest as for their mere showiness, and they 
adopted all manner of quaint devices in order to accommodate their pets.. 
They were grown in all kinds of receptacles ; pots, baskets, and shells, and 
on blocks of wood, and suspended from the roof in crowds, besides filling 
the stages almost to overflowing, so that to an outsider an Orchid house 
presented the strangest sight imaginable. And there were many interesting 
little plants in cultivation in those days that are now seldom seen, except 
in a few botanical collections, but even then an Orchid that could have 
been accommodated on a block of the size of a penny-piece would have 
been something of a novelty. 
pee.) 
Epiphytic Orchids are often specially adapted to these quaint methods of 
culture. Many of them grow on branches of trees, and in a few cases their 
habit of growing sideways or even pendulous has become persistent, and 
many of the smaller species never exceed a few inches in height and succeed 
best at a moderate distance from the roof glass. They do not, as a rule, 
require a great amount of compost, and suitable atmospheric conditions. 
seem to be the most important point in their successful culture. This can 
be secured by a properly balanced condition of the heating, damping, 
shading, and ventilating of the house. Some care, however, is necessary 
that the plants on the stages do not suffer from drip from those above, or 
the young growths are sure to damp off, and the loss of the plant would 
probably follow. A proper amount of moisture is essential, but the use of 
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