THE ORCHID REVIEW. $3 
to be difficult to manage, the combination of which hold out expectations 
of easier culture under ordinary conditions—for my experience is that 
seedlings raised in this country flourish, where the imported parents are 
amongst those which deteriorate in the hands of such as have not special 
accommodation for them. 
My house is a span-roofed one, with an orientation North and South, 
somewhat shaded in the winter by higher buildings on the East and West 
sides, so that it labours under the disadvantage of receiving only about 
two hours of direct sunlight in mid-winter. One third of the house is 
partitioned off from the rest as a warmer portion, that end being un- 
fortunately the most shaded, but it is more conveniently near the source 
of heat—a steam main. 
One difficulty in raising seeds in a small collection, necessarily, is to 
have desirable species in flower together, and much non-success is un- 
doubtedly due to the unripeness of either pollen or stigma, and _ this 
unceitainty applies particularly to pollen which has been borrowed from 
other collections, points which materially, I think, affect the results, but 
requires greater experience that I can at present venture to claim for its 
elucidation. The greatest care, of course, should be taken in making 
experiments to avoid the possibility of self fertilization of the flowers, or 
much disappointment after years of anxious expectation and care with the 
seedlings will follow, and careful records should be made at once, anda 
label attached to the particular pedicel, to avoid any future confusion ; also 
any undue excitement of the stigmatic surface from rough handling is 
likely to deceive by producing a spurious appearance of fertilization, only 
to be cleared up when the pod ripens, which then is found to contain 
nothing but chaff. 
The detailed list of the crosses I have made could be given, but I 
fear would take too much of your space. It comprises most of the 
nobile, fimbriatum, and nigro-hirsute species, and in many instances the 
reverse cross has been made, and fresh trials where failure resulted. 
Good pods were secured on D. nobile x D. Findlayanum and the reverse 
cross, twice, D. n. xX D. xX Ainsworthii intertextum, D. n. x D. 
Wardianum (this pod burst in November, when the seed was yet quite 
green, but in other respects excellent, and it is apparently germinating 
freely); D. xX Leechianum x D. Findlayanum, D. aureum x D. 
crepidatum, twice, and D. primulinum x D. fimbriatum oculatum. 
This last is interesting, but I fear will have to be numbered amongst 
the half successes, for although the pod is still green, and has persisted 
since 21st May last, it does not look plump enough to contain good seed. 
The other partial successes are D. nobile X D. primulinum (the ovary 
enlarged but withered after some weeks); D. n. Cooksoni x D. 
