g2 THE’ ORCHID REVIEW. 
For a month past Ccelogyne cristata has provided us with plenty of 
its chaste and beautiful white flowers. No Orchid can or does rival this 
for easy cultivation, quantity, quality, and purity of its blossoms. Large 
masses should have a thorough soaking as soon as the flowers are taken off, 
to assist in plumping up the bulbs after being kept dry during the time they 
have been in flower. Further details will be given next month. C. 
barbata has growths an inch or more in length, which will soon be 
emitting roots, and may with advantage have a little new peat and moss 
given it. It seldom needs repotting, although it grows over its receptacle, 
the creeping rhizomes can generally be pegged back upon the rooting 
material, thus obviating the necessity of repotting. Very little water will 
be needed yet. Coming into flower is the pretty dwarf compact-growing 
C. sparsa, which thrives when grown in pans in a mixture of peat, a 
little loam, and moss, suspended from the roof of the Cattleya house, and 
watered frequently when growing, but seldom when at rest. C. Massangeana 
and flaccida are now commencing to grow, and should, if occasion calls for 
it, be given fresh material composed of the above ingredients. They 
receive a similar treatment and occupy a relative position to C. sparsa, 
though teak-wood baskets are preferable to pans for hese. 
The houses should now be damped down as soon in the morning as the 
minimum daily temperatures are reached, and again in the afternoon if 
evaporation of the former has taken place. Air should be given carefully 
and gradually, and in the case of the warmer houses may be taken off 
about two o'clock to preserve the beneficial effects of sunshine when we get 
it, taking care, however, to open the ventilators again to admit a little air 
during the night. The generality of the plants should be looked over 
daily to see if any require watering, but never water a plant if any doubt 
exists as to whether it is dry enough to stand in need of another supply, 
let it go for another day, for a day’s drought will do much less harm to 
Orchids in general than a week during which the ball of the plant is in a 
sodden condition. 
ORCHIDS AT THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. — 
THE second meeting of the year was held at the Drill Hall, James 
Street, Westminster, on February 9th, when there was a very good display 
of Orchids, from numerous exhibitors, and five plants secured an Award 
of Merit, while Cultural Commendations were given to two magnificent 
Dendrobiums from Mr. James Cypher. 
Frau Ida Brandt, Brunnenhof, Riesbach, Zurich (gr. Mr. Schlecht), 
received an Award of Merit for Lelia anceps Kienastiana, a finely coloured 
