38 THE ORCHID REVIEW. [FEBRUARY, [gI1. 
covering the glass with a mat, and remove it when the sun is not shining on 
the frame. When the Cypripedium seedlings are removed from the pot on 
which they germinated, I pot these singly and place them in the seedling 
frame till they become too large. 
I have made several experiments with Cypripediums, and have formed 
two definite conclusions in regard to them. Firstly, that finer blossoms are 
produced if a little dry guano is added to the compost, about a teaspoonful 
to a 48-sized pot. Cypripedium insigne was the first plant on which the 
above treatment was tried, and the result was so gratifying that it is now 
practised on all the others. Another experiment I made was to ascertain 
the most suitable compost for these Orchids. Four 32in. pots of 
Cypripedium insigne were placed side by side at the back of the frame. 
In one a compost of peat and moss was used, in the second leaf-soil and 
moss, in the third loam, mortar rubble, and osmunda, and in the fourth 
polypodium fibre and moss. After a year and a-half’s growth it was 
evident that the third was the most suitable. All my Cypripediums are now 
potted in that compost. 
ODONTOGLOSSUM HoUusE. 
There yet remain the Odontoglossums about which I have not yet 
spoken. The Carnations and Roses having all been removed, I grow my 
Odontoglossums in the ordinary greenhouse, at the end next to the partition 
separating the houses. The pots are stood on pans or saucers, according 
to height, these in turn being placed on tiles. To all plants in growth I 
give a good supply of water, whatever may be the season, but in winter I 
prefer to let the surface moss become fairly dry before watering the plant. 
From the end of March till November I syringe the pots twice daily and 
overhead on fine days. These plants are kept more shaded than the 
occupants of the other house. As soon as a plant of this genus has done 
flowering I remove it to the other end of the house, and keep it drier till a 
fresh start is made. It is then returned to its rightful position, and water 
given, increasing gradually in quantity. 
I repot my Odontoglossums when the new growth is about two inches 
long, and remove all back bulbs, leaving three to support the lead. I repot 
every two years, and use the following compost : polypodium and sphagnum 
moss in equal parts, with a few oak leaves mixed with the whole. I prefer 
fern rhizomes to crocks for drainage for these plants. At the present time 
I am experimenting in feéding several plants of Odontoglossums, but cannot 
yet recommend or depreciate any stimulant; for a nine months’ trial, at 
least, should be given. 
I must now close this survey of my house and Sleiits: and hope that this 
article may be of interest, especially to the amateur readers of this excellent 
monthly. 
Se 
So ESE SOS uri 
