May, 1914-] 



THE ORCHID WORLD. 



beautiful albino form of C Lueddemanniana 

 known as Empress. 



Albino varieties are numerous, perhaps the 

 finest being a batch of vvhite-flowering C. 

 labiata, of which mention should be made of 

 Gilmourias and Harefield Hall variety. Other 

 specials include C. Warscewiczii alba var. 

 Firmin Lambeau, which is one of the 

 extremely few plants that has been honoured 

 by the award of a Gold Medal, and C. 

 Loddigesii alba Stanley's variety, a very 

 elegant and choice albino, of which an 

 illustration is included m the present issue. 

 C. Mendelii var. Stuart Low^ — the pure 

 albino form ma)- be seen in more than one 

 good plant. It is undoubtedly one of the 

 rarest of the albinos. 



In other houses there are immense stocks 

 of various species, a special feature being the 

 Oncidiums, which are grown in thousands. 

 There are good batches of the well-known 

 species required by amateurs, not onlv 

 moderate sized plants, but several strong 

 specimens with an abundance of bloom. One 

 house is entirely occupied by Vanda coerulea, 

 another with Renanthera Imschootiana, and 

 a third with Dendrobium Wardianum, all 

 represented by thousands of healthy plants. 

 A very healthy and vigorous lot of Miltonia 

 vexillaria, as well as Dendrobium Jamesianum 

 and other plants requiring similar treatment, 

 are well worth inspecting. 



Odontoglossums occupy several spacious 

 houses, and, needless to remark, crispums are 

 the favourite plants ; their number is legion. 

 Odontiodas, of which there is an extensive 

 collection, are quite a blaze of colour. Quite 

 a change is to be seen in one long house 

 where the chief occupants are DendroV)iunis 

 of the Phalaenopsis section ; all are cultivated 

 in small pans susy)ended from the roof. 

 Dendrobium Brymcrianum is well repre- 

 sented, the batch of plants being the largest 

 and finest that the writer has ever seen. 



Phalaenopses, particularly the elegant 

 amabilis Rimestadiana, occupy considerable 

 space. Cnelogyne asperata looks very happy 

 and grows with great freedom. There are 

 several healthy plants of Yanda Sanderiana 

 and the rare Aerides odoratum album, as well 



as a large collection of Bulbophyllums, 

 Cirrhopetalums and other botanical Orchids. 

 Cypripediums occuj^y considerable space, 

 several houses being devoted to their 

 cultivation. A feature of interest is the varied 

 stock of Cypripedium species, many of which 

 are now rare. 



Hybrids are equally well represented, and 

 include a very choice selection of Sophronitis 

 crosses, prominent among them being S.-C. 

 Thwaitesii the F.C.C. variety, S.-C. Blackii 

 and S.-C. Dons, the latter having been raised 

 on both the Sophronitis and the aurea 

 parents. Leelio-Cattleyas are to be seen in 

 countless numbers, and Brassavola hybrids 

 are grown in large quantity. Of the latter 

 mention may be made of B.-C. Dietrichiana, 

 the richest coloration being in this plant, and 

 also of numerous albinos in this section. The 

 hybrids are so extensive in kind and variety 

 that we must defer a full account until 

 another occasion. 



ORCHID CULTURE. 



MV success as an amateur of three years' 

 standing is entirely due to the good 

 plants sent out by Messrs. Mansell 

 and Hatcher, which goes a long way towards 

 helping those who cannot help themselves. 

 A good plant is worth its money to the 

 inexperienced. 1 like to see my plants 

 improve each year, and it is no exaggeration 

 to say that I look upon my Orchitis as part 

 of my daily life, the whole of ni)- spare time 

 being spent with them. 



Two plants thrown out from a private 

 collection gave me my start — they were 

 Maxillaria picta and Laslia Bella ; the former 

 thrives well and will soon reward me with 

 flowers. Some gardeners are very unfortu- 

 nate with their Orchids, and little wonder 

 when one sees the conditions under which 

 their culture is facing attempted. I have seen 

 them starved and neglected, and exposed to 

 burning sun during the summer time, and in 

 this state they were expected to bloom. I 

 have .seen hundreds of them treated in this 

 way by a gardener whose brains were 

 composed of sawdust. He scorned good 



