88 
THE ORCHID WORLD. 
[January, 
Fholo /y] IF. U'aldock 
Dendrobium nohile virginale, a specimen with 220 flowers, as grown by Mr. H. G. Alexander, in the 
Westonbiri colleclion. 
SOME EPIPHYTIC ORCHIDS.^ 
By H. G. Alexander. 
HAVING been honoured by a request 
from the Council to read to-day a 
paper on the Cultivation of Orchids, 
I propose giving my observations on the 
treatment most essential to the successful 
cultivation of the epiphyte section, for the 
greater number of the really showy, useful 
and popular kinds are members of this 
extensive division of the family. 
Speaking of Orchids generally there is, at 
the present day, not only a very remarkable 
development of the hybrids of artificial origin, 
a progression entirely brought about by the 
energetic work of our hybridisers, but also a 
" Report i)f Paper rfad at the Orchid Coiifcienre^ 
November, 1912. 
very visible and great improvement to be 
everywhere noticed m their cultivation. 
Nevertheless, there are a few epiphytes still 
responsible for much of the disappointment 
occasionally experienced in Orchid culture. 
In support of this latter statement I will 
instance the Cattleya, Laelia, and Dendrobium 
genera, also Phala?nopsis, yErides, Vandas 
and other distichous kinds. Some of these 
epiphytes, notably the species and hybrids of 
Cattleyas and Lselias, the bigeneric Laslio- 
Cattleyas, Sophro-Cattleyas and Sophro- 
Laelias, the deciduous and evergreen kinds of 
Dendrobium, and also Phalasnopsis and 
Vanda cnerulea, are, probably, the most 
beautiful and specially desirable of all 
