December, 1913.] 



THE ORCHID WORLD. 



57 



ORCHIDS FOR AMATEURS. 



THE Orchid house is always an attrac- 

 tive part of the garden, and no matter 

 what the season of the year may be 

 there is something of interest to be seen or 

 done. Many a spare hour m winter time may 

 be occupied with cleaning the plants, one of 

 the most important parts of good cultivation, 

 and one frequently neglected by amateurs. 

 In days gone by, when as many plants were 

 imported during a month as there now are 

 during a year, considerable time was needed 

 to properly cleanse them. Various kinds of 



particularly fond of getting on the flower- 

 buds and in the folds of the young leaves, 

 which soon assume a brown or rusty appear- 

 ance. Soft soap and water, or one of the 

 nicotine washes, will be found very suitable 

 for their eradication. After the wash has 

 been used care should always be taken that 

 the new growths are not left with any water 

 in them, for should a cold night occur there is 

 considerable chance of the plant receiving a 

 chill, resulting in the death of the new growth, 

 and probably the whole plant. A good 

 method is to hold the plant upside down, and 

 carefully press the water out of the growths. 



Cypripedium Lceanum, a well-flowered specimen. 



insects not only travelled in the packing 

 cases, but fixed themselves on to the bulbs 

 and leaves with considerable tenacity. The 

 present time is mainly one of seedlings raised 

 in this country under cleaner conditions. 

 There is much less attention required, the 

 plants grow in neater habit, and are not likely 

 to be affected with tropical complaints. 



The most frequent enemy that Orchidists 

 have to deal with is thrip, a small, almost 

 invisible insect, which propagates rapidly and 

 does considerable damage. These insects are 



Prevention is better than cure. A bad 

 attack of thrip can generally be prevented by 

 fumigating the house at regular intervals, say, 

 twice a month during the summer, and less 

 frequently during the winter. Fumigation is 

 most effectual when the atmosphere of the 

 house is fairly dry, and when there is an 

 absence of wind. 



Cattleyas and allied plants are frequently 

 subjected to attacks of mealy bug and scale. 

 These pests delight to work their way 

 beneath the skin of the newly-made bulbs, 



VOL. IV. 



9 



