THE ORCHID REVIEW. 43 
a few degrees, and, where small quantities are dealt with, less heat is 
needed. An experienced preparer will be guided more by the appearance 
of the pod after each dip than by any fixed formula. It is best to 
have good-sized boxes or barrels to sweat the pods in, those holding two or 
three thousand each being preferable, as the heat is retained better. The 
four qualities should also be kept apart, a fold of flannel being laid on each 
if all go into the same box. By the following morning, they should have 
changed to chocolate or puce colour, and are then ready to spread on the 
drying shelves, but if the number is large and the heat well kept in, they 
may be left for another day. 
A curing house is used for preparing the crop for market, and this is 
divided into four compartments, two below and two above, one of the lower 
ones being heated with a flue to 110° F. These compartments are fitted 
with tiers of lath shelves, about six inches apart, on which mats or canvas 
are laid, to dry the fruit on. As they begin to turn soft, the pods are 
removed from the hot chamber to the one above, which is cooler, and, after 
attaining a certain degree of flexibility, they are moved into the adjoining 
upper room to finish. In the cooler rooms, the pods are sorted as they 
progress in curing, being spread on fibre mats, and the worker, sitting on 
the floor, keeps the four qualities distinct, which facilitates the work, as the 
short and split pods dry more rapidly. When finished, the pods are wiped 
with soft flannel, tied in bundles, and kept in boxes with close-fitting lids, 
and examined once or twice weekly in order to remove any mouldy ones. 
After four or five months, any pods liable to mould will have shown 
themselves, and they are then measured and tied up in neat bundles of fifty 
each for market. The tin boxes used for packing vanilla measure 12} by 84 
inches, and 44 inches deep, and hold about twelve pounds, and each box 
has a label pasted on it which bears the grower’s trade mark, the length 
and number of packets, their quality and net weight. The lids are then 
sealed close with pasted paper, packed in wooden cases, six in each, and 
dispatched to market. 
A plate is given, showing photographs of the Vanilla in flower and in fruit ; 
together with figures showing the method of fertilisation, and a plan of the 
curing house. There are also some miscellaneous notes, showing cost of 
labour, prospect of profitable returns, and other interesting details, and, as 
the present price of vanilla in London is about twenty-five shillings a pound, 
the crop should be a profitable one where conditions are favourable. The 
Vanilla disease, and wet weather when the plants are in flower, seem to be 
the worst enemies the cultivator has to dread, and the former, it is 
suggested, should be kept out of the U.S. territories by admitting only 
plants which are absolutely free from disease. 
eR 
