Mnrrli, 1015.] 



THE ORCTTII) WORLD. 



Cypripedium Seedling, about 1 8 months old. 



The necessity for fungus to ensure 

 germination is too advanced a subject to be 

 considered in these elementary notes, nor is 

 it, perhaps, worth consideration when an 

 amateur requires only a few dozen plants in 

 all, which are obtainable from a mere fraction 

 of the immense number of seeds contained in 

 a pod. However, we may safely assume that 

 out of SIX pots selected for our purpose of 

 seed sowing three, at least, will be furnished 

 with any necessary fungus, so there is little to 

 be feared in this respect, for if only one pot 

 yields a crop an ample supply of seedlings 

 will be produced. 



Supposing every care has been taken in the 

 aforementioned details the freshly sown seed 

 will soon assume a greenish and swollen 

 appearance. After a few weeks the first 

 visible signs of a green leaf will show that 

 success IS being achieved, and, should all go 

 well, root hairs, followed by real roots, will 

 appear from the base of the tiny plant. At 

 this stage the young seedlings may be 

 pricked off singly into little pots, or several 

 may be placed in a pan or pot, but whichever 

 is used ample drainage material must be 

 employed, and care be taken that the compost 

 is light and fibrous. With a genial atmosphere 

 rapid growth is made, and frequent attention 

 will be found necessary to ensure a sufficiency 

 of nutritive rooting material. 



Another method of germinating the seeds, 

 and one which is carried out on a more up-to- 

 date principle, consists of selecting a suitable 

 pan, say, one of 4 inches in diameter, and 



after about 1 inch oi dramagc material has 

 been placed 111 the bottom, filling it with 

 sphagnum moss or light and porous conqxjst. 

 A piece of thin linen, cheese-cloth or tiffany, 

 slightly larger than the pan, is laid on the top 

 and the edge pressed down between the inner 

 side of the pan and the compost, using a 

 potting stick, or similar tool, for the purpose. 

 The whole mass is then pressed down until a 

 space of about i inch is left below the rim of 

 the pan. Some living sphagnum moss is now 

 selected, preferably from the pot in which a 

 vigorous Cypripedium is growing, and after 

 being cut up in small pieces, or rubbed 

 through a riddle, is placed on the top of the 

 linen material and carefully pressed down ; 

 the depth of this layer should not exceed a 

 quarter of an inch, nor is it necessary to place 

 it on the central area. The finished seed-pan 

 will now have the appearance of a green bed 

 of fine moss, with a central patch of bare 

 linen material about I inch in diameter. The 

 prepared seed-pans should receive a supply of 

 rain-water, and be left a few days to drain, 

 after which the seed is sown on the surface 

 and the whole covered with a sheet of glass 

 resting on the rim of the pan. If all goes 

 well a good crop of seedlings will be visible 

 in a few weeks, the large majority appearing 

 not on the central area but on the surrounding 

 sphagnum moss. 



Perhaps one of the chief causes of failure 

 may be traced to insufficient heat, the higher 

 the temperature, with its corresponding 

 increase of atmospheric moisture, the better 

 the result. There are, of course, some species 

 of Cypripedium that are accustomed to quite 

 a low temperature, and these will probably 

 give good germinative results when similarly 

 treated, while there are others that inhabit 

 districts noted for their great heat, and which 

 must therefore be treated accordingly. But 

 in all cases the best results are obtained when 

 a high temperature is maintained, something 

 about 65 degrees Fahr., although 75 degrees 

 is still better. The secret of successful work 

 is to get the seedlings up as quickly as 

 possible, and thus shorten, as much as we can, 

 the period when they are most susceptible to 

 disease and sudden arrest of development 



