THE ORCHID WORLD. 



91 



CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS FOR JANUARY. 



By J. T. BARKER, The 



WE have now reached that season of 

 the year when we may expect our 

 plants to show signs of renewed 

 activity, but during- the present month the 

 winter treatment must be continued, as there 

 IS much danger in unduly pushing our plants 

 into growth. 



Temperatures. The atmospheric tempera- 

 tures of the houses should be mamtained, as 

 nearly as circumstances will permit, at the 

 following figures: — 



Cool house, day 50 deg. — 55 deg., with sun 

 60 deg., night 50 deg. 



Intermediate house, day 60 deg. — 63 deg., 

 with sun 66 deg., night 57 deg. — 60 deg. 



Cattleya and Mexican house, day 60 deg. — 

 65 deg., with sun 68 deg., night 58 deg. — 

 60 deg. 



East Indian house, day 65 deg. — 70 deg, 

 with sun 75 deg., night 65 deg. 



The changes which occur so suddenly in 

 the climate make it almost impossible to 

 maintain these exactly. It matters little how 

 much temperatures rise during the day from 

 sun heat, provided there are proportional 

 quantities of fresh air and moisture. Great 

 care should be taken that the night tempera- 

 tures are not exceeded, as if the pipes are 

 over-heated a condition of dryness is caused, 

 which is detrimental to our plants. The 

 whole question of temperature depends on the 

 outside condition ; on a mild day or night no 

 harm will occur should the figures gi\'en be 

 exceeded, and on a cold day or night it will 

 not matter if the temperatures fall a few 

 degrees lower than the minimum given. 



Ventilation is most essential to all our 

 houses, and the plants should be afforded a 

 supply of fresh air on all favourable occasions ; 

 a stagnant atmosphere is injurious to the 

 plants. With a little trouble it is astonishing 

 what can be accomplished even in admitting 

 air on unfavourable occasions. Draughts 

 must be strictly avoided, as undoubtedly they 

 are as injurious to plants as to ourselves. 



Atmospheric moisture. The amount of mois- 

 ture in the air must be regulated according 



West Hill, Hassle, East Yorks. 



to the amount of fire heat used, and other 

 circumstances. All the paths and walls must 

 be damped once or twice a day according to 

 the outside conditions. On a damp, moist, 

 mild day they will not require so much as on 

 a clear bright day. Much depends on the 

 proper balance of atmospheric moisture being 

 maintained, as an atmosphere overloaded with 

 moisture is as injurious as an over-heated 

 stuffy one. 



Watering must be done with caution, no 

 plant should be allowed to suffer from too 

 little or too much water ; the cultivator should 

 he thoroughly satisfied that his plant requires 

 it before any is given. When a plant is dry 

 and requires water, I believe m thoroughly 

 moistening the compost in which it is grow- 

 ing. To my mind the whole secret of plant 

 culture depends on the giving and with- 

 holding of water. 



Insect and other pests must be diligently 

 searched for, as at this season they are often 

 very troublesome, and if allowed to get a 

 footing they are hard to eradicate. The 

 house should be vapourised at intervals as a 

 preventative against attacks of thrip and 

 other pests. Slugs and cockroaches do an 

 immense amount of harm, devouring roots, 

 flower spikes, and, in fact, almost everything. 



Cleaning. Should the houses not have had 

 their usual winter cleansing this matter should 

 have attention at once. In nothing is cleanli- 

 ness so essential as in Orchid growing. The 

 whole of the houses, both inside and out, 

 woodwork, glass, and walls, should be 

 thoroughly cleansed. The plants should then 

 be well sponged with some approved insecti- 

 cide and rearranged so that each one receives 

 the maximum amount of light possible. Like- 

 wise all pots, stands, or whatever is used to 

 elevate the plants to the desired height, 

 should be thoroughly scrubbed, using water as 

 hot as possible. Thoroughness in this detail 

 is essential, a thing half done is not done at 

 all, and in nothing is this so true as in plant 

 cleaning. 



Miltonia vexillaria, and its hybrids, in the 



