THE ORCHID REVIEW, 339 
THE NEW ORCHID HOUSES AT KEw. 
A NOTE relating to the re-construction of the Orchid houses at Kew 
appeared on page 193, and as the work is now completed, and the plants 
installed in their quarters, a few additional particulars will be interesting. 
It will be remembered that the old houses formed the east wing of the 
T-range, being entered by a small lobby devoted to insectivorous plants. 
This wing was divided in the middle by a glass partition intoa Warmand a 
Cool house, each having a large stage in the centre, two narrow stages next 
the glass, and a walk between on either side. Many of the plants in the 
centre being too far away from the glass, it was decided to replace the two 
large houses by four smaller ones, and, as these were to occupy the same 
site, the plants were temporarily placed in two houses in the north wing of 
the same range. The space occupied by the lobby at the end of the old 
houses was also taken in, so that the new ones are several feet longer than 
those which they replace. 
The new houses are each about 40 feet long and 12 feet wide, arranged 
in two pairs, side by side, with a walk running along the centre. The 
adjacent houses ventilate into each other by means of a space between the 
party wall and the glass division. This runs throughout the entire length 
of the houses, and ensures a constant circulation of air between them. 
Bottom ventilation on the outside is provided by shutters in the outer walls, 
hinged along the south side and sliding on the north. The top ventilators 
are hinged, and open upwards by hand, each separately. They are all 
placed along the adjacent sides of the roofs, an arrangement which will be 
readily understood in connection with the method of shading employed. 
The tiffany blinds are carried on three long rollers, one on each of the two 
outer roofs, which run on the rafters direct, and the other runs on a number 
of horizontal iron bars which are carried from one apex to the other. By 
this arrangement it is obvious that not only can the ventilators be opened 
beneath the shading, but also one blind suffices instead of two. The 
glazing is Rendle’s system, and the rain water from the roof is collected 
into tanks within the houses. 
The respective houses are arranged as follows:—Entering from the 
Victoria house on the south side, the visitor finds himself in the Warm or 
East Indian house, and then passes on into the Cattleya or Intermediate 
house. Behind this is the Cool house, while the remaining one on the 
north side is largely devoted to plants of the Vanda and Cypripedium 
groups. The lattice-work stages running round what may be termed the 
outer sides of the block are in four tiers, with a solid stage holding 
moisture-retaining materials underneath. On the inner side of the two 
north houses extends a water-tank, from one end to the other, and above 
