13*1 
part is quite independent of tlie dead portion 
below, which has simpl)' to be removed to 
enable the plant and its source of nourishment 
to be again brought in contact. 
It is impossible to lay down any rules as the 
l)est for the culture of Orchids. The plants 
are often found thriving" under such very 
opposite treatment, and as one cannot be 
certain that the conditions and surroundings 
are in all cases preciseh' similar, much more 
can be done by suggestions than by definite 
advice. Observation and common sense are 
very important factors if combined with that 
system of culture, the nearest to nature. 
Nothing is more injurious to the plants than 
too high a temperature ; many would be far 
l)etter in cooler quarters than are at present 
allowed. A very important matter is to see 
that a lower temperature is kept at night than 
in the day, for nothing" is more injurious than 
anything contrary to natural conditions. So 
sensitive are all plants, and especially Orchids, 
to atmospheric influence, that no matter how 
well they are treated in other ways, they 
cannot long continue in a satisfactory 
condition unless a proper atmosphere is 
maintained about them. The state of the 
atmosphere is of equal, if not of greater, 
importance than the potting compost 
Light, the very life of most plants, is less 
under our control than any other factor. 
Possibl)' in no other detail are Orchids so 
liable to be mismanaged as in respect to 
shading. All young growers should make a 
special point of grasping the full value of 
light. There are few growers engaged to-day 
in Orchid cultivation who have not noticed 
during the past season the healthy vigour and 
growth of nearly all Orchids that benefit by 
heat and sunshine, sure evidence of how very 
beneficial was the hot weather of iQi i, when 
during that rare and ideal summer we enjoyed 
in this country so many months of brilliant 
sunshine. The season of 191 2 will not give 
us such satisfactory results. 
The watering of Orchids is one of the most 
important operations connected with their 
culture. The majorit)' of the terrestrial kinds 
require proportionally more water at the roots 
than the epiphytic kinds. The family of 
[March, 1913. 
Cattle\ as and Laelias require comparatively 
little water at their roots, the only exception 
being in the height of their growing season. 
If furnished with plenty of live roots they 
seldom shri\'el, even when the pots show 
scarcely a vestige of moisture. The roots 
already in the dry material continue to grow, 
unmistakable evidence of the condition 
favourable to the health of the plant. In nine 
cases out of ten the season's growth precedes 
root action by a longer or shorter period, and 
m this matter of watering" we should be 
guided by Nature, only supplying" water in 
quantities to the roots when it is seen b\- their 
activity that increased quantities are called 
for by the demands made on the plants by 
developing growth. 
While there is no royal road to Orchid 
culture other than the long and certain one 
of observation and practical experience, 
Orchids can be successfully grown by the 
gardener who is a good cultivator of green- 
house plants if he takes to them and really 
studies their wants. And since so many of 
the most showy and useful kinds are sold so 
cheaply, a large measure of quiet enjoyment 
can be derived from these interesting plants 
without extravagant expenditure. 
The one matter which has, more than any 
other, revolutionised Orchid culture is the art 
of hybridising and raising" seedlings. This 
important part of Orchidology has created an 
entirely new interest, and fanciers are no 
longer dependent on importations of the 
plants from foreign countries. At the present 
time seedling Orchids are raised freely, and 
these home-raised plants are more easily 
cultivated than imported plants, naturally so 
because they are acclimatised from birth. 
This combination of circumstances could 
scarcely fail to make for advancement, and 
it is to these, together with the reduction in 
price, and last, but not least, to the intelligence 
and sagacit}- of our practical growers on 
whom laid, in the past, the responsibilit)- of 
cultivating rare and costlv collections, that the 
wonderful progress is due, and which has 
exploded for ever the idea that England is, 
as Sir joseph Hooker once observed, the 
grave of tropical Orchids. 
THE ORCHID WORLD. 
