ON ORCHIDS. 



5^5 



Dendrobiums. — At the present time there are no species of 

 Orchids so much in demand as the Dendrobiums, amongst the 

 most beautiful and, in most cases, easily cultivated of the 

 Orchidece. There are at the present time nearly one hundred 

 species, and an equal number of garden hybrids are in 

 cultivation. Considering the wide area from which the species 

 are derived, 

 it is not sur- 

 prising that 

 there is a 

 great differ- 

 ence in their 

 habit of 

 growth. Some 

 have small 

 wiry bulbs, 

 while others 

 have growths 

 of gigantic 

 proportions. 

 D. siiperbiens^ 

 native of 

 tropical Aus- 

 tralia, repre- 

 sents one of 

 the sections 

 which of late 

 years have 

 come into pro- 

 minence by 

 the re-intro- 

 duction of D. 

 Fhalcenopsis 

 (Fig. 367), one 

 of the most 

 wonderful and 

 beautiful 

 species 

 known. The 

 flowers are 



produced in racemes, and the colour is found in all shades from 

 paper-white to rich purple and crimson, thus giving it preference 

 over all the species of the genus. One of the grandest sights ever 

 witnessed was that in the collection of Baron Schroeder, where 

 upwards of 500 spikes of flowers were to be seen some time 

 ago. To grow this section satisfactorily it is advisable to afford 

 strong light and a hot, humid atmosphere during the growing 

 season, with a cooler and drier atmosphere during the period of 



Fig. 367, — Dendrobium Phal^nopsis. 



