194 THE ORCHID REVIEW. [JuLy, 1915. 
=a sprayer, with the damping of the floors and staging as often as necessary, 
~will do much to reduce the amount of direct watering required. 
Such a collection forms a never-failing source of interest, for the plants 
-are of the most varied aspect, and there is always something in bloom. 
Such plants can easily be grown on into specimens without taking up too 
great an amount of space, and it is when grown in this way that their : 
-quaint beauty is seen to best advantage, for many of them are very 
floriferous, and the number of flowers often makes up for what some of them 
lack in size. The latter quality, however, is not always wanting, for in 
some of them the flowers seem quite disproportionate to the size of the 
plants. In shape, and in the way that they are produced, the flowers 
-are of the most varied description, and there are resemblances to insects 
-and other quaint objects that are often very striking, while the range of 
colour to be seen among them, and the exquisite beauty of the markings Is 
unrivalled in any other group of plants. 
It is true that the enormous development of hybridisation has pushed 
‘these unobtrusive little species somewhat into the background, but more 
-of them are grown than appear at our shows, and their aggregate number 
in collections must be considerable. The remark that they are not often 
‘imported now-a-days applies almost as much to Orchids generally, for very 
few collectors now visit the tropics with a sort of roving commission in 
search of novelties. They now devote their energies to producing them at 
home, and with considerable success, though the work naturally extends 
-over a-more limited field, and there are fewer surprises than when Orchid 
importing was at the height of its popularity. And the decline in 
‘importing is naturally accompanied by a reduction in the number of what 
-are called botanical Orchids, a term used somewhat indiscriminately for 
“Orchids that are not generally grown, without much reference to theif 
individual beauty. 
The Orchid novelties of the world have not yet been nearly exhausted. 
‘Of this we have plenty of evidence, and there are many species known 10 
science that have not yet been imported, or that have been quickly lost 
because of difficulties attendant on their culture. Here we are face to face 
with one of the difficulties, for it is of little use importing Orchids that 
cannot afterwards be grown, however attractive they may otherwise e- 
Orchids grow naturally under a very wide range of natural conditions, and 
one has-to seleet such“as can: be grown with success, especially if the 
number of houses is limited. Ina single house one must either neglect the 
‘warm or the cooler-growing species. 
