374 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[August, 
Our Native Orchids. 
There is a very general impression among 
those who are not familiar with plants, that 
orchids are “ air plants,” and cultivated upon 
billets of wood or pieces of cork. It is true 
SNAKE’S-TONOTTE ORCHIS (P ophioylossoides.) 
that many of the orchids found on the 
branches of trees in the forests of warm coun¬ 
tries grow in this manner, but so do other 
plants, not orchids, and not closely related 
to them. Orchids are characterized, not by 
their manner of growing, but by the peculiar 
structure of their flowers, in which they 
differ from all other plants. Without going 
into details, it may be said that in these flow¬ 
ers the stamens (usually but one or two) are 
united with the pistil (style) in such a man¬ 
ner as to disguise the two. The flowers are 
often showy, and their parts very unlike, 
with one petal, called the Zip, usually much 
larger than the others, developed in curious 
and often beautiful forms. While the most 
showy orchids belong to tropical countries, 
plants of the family are by no means re¬ 
stricted to warm climates. We have in our 
Northern States over fifty species of native 
orchids. These, as a general thing, are found 
in damp, shady localities. The well-known 
“Lady’s Slippers” (Cypripedium) are the 
largest flowered of our orchids, but some of 
the smaller flowers are of exquisite beauty. 
While these plants are not, as a general 
thing, very abundant, there are few localities 
with suitable situations in which some of 
them may not be found, and they well repay 
a careful search. Those who have a moist 
spot in the garden, especially if partly 
shaded, can, by the use of leaf-mould, make 
the native orchids feel at home. Having but 
few fibrous roots, they are not much dis¬ 
turbed by removal; we have collected them 
when in full flower, and transferred them to 
the garden, where they continued blooming. 
The largest genus with us is Habenaria, 
which includes the beautiful species of 
Fringed Orchis, with spikes of showy pur¬ 
ple, and sometimes (though rarely) yellow 
and white flowers. The genus Pogonia has 
some species with very odd-looking flowers, 
and one, the Snake’s-tongue Orchis (P. ophio- 
glossoides), is of delicate beauty. The latter, 
which is here figured, is less rare than most 
orchids. It has rose-colored, sweet-scented 
flowers, which are about an inch long, and 
usually solitary, though plants are some¬ 
times found with two and three flowers. 
Summer Propagation. 
The novice in gardening, who likes to try 
the propagation of plants, “just for the fun 
of it.” will find that many bard-wooded 
shrubs will strike root if cuttings are set out 
the present month. He can try one or both 
of two methods. One is known as the ‘ ‘saucer 
system”; the other has no name. This last 
method consists in first making a frame. A 
box of any convenient size will answer ; this 
being without top or bottom, merely a frame, 
has one end—top or bottom—covered with 
common sheeting, tacked on tight, so that it 
will not sag when rain falls on it. This frame 
is placed over a sandy spot in the garden. If 
the garden affords no such place, then fill 
a shallow box, or boxes, 
about three inches deep, 
with pure clean sand, and 
cover them with the frame. 
In the “saucer system,” 
a common saucer or soup- 
plate is used. Clean sand, 
to the depth of an inch or 
so is placed in this ; the 
cuttings are stuck in the 
sand, so closely together 
that their leaves touch. 
Then water is added, suf¬ 
ficient to bring the sand to 
the condition of mud— 
very wet—and the sand 
must be constantly kept in 
this condition, while the 
whole is exposed to full 
sunlight. We assume that 
the amateur merely wishes 
to amuse himself with the 
propagation of the various 
shrubs and vines about his 
place. He will find that 
the cuttings of some, taken 
from very soft wood, will 
grow, especially if tried in 
the saucer. Others will 
take root more readily if 
allowed to become some¬ 
what hard, but not quite 
mature. The harder the wood, generally, the 
longer the time required for taking root. 
Such cuttings will usually do better in sand 
under the frame. A great deal of useful ex¬ 
perience may be derived from experimenting 
with cuttings in the manner here suggested. 
One can, by proper care in selecting and 
saving the seeds of various garden vegetables 
and flowers, greatly improve the “ strain,” 
as it is called. It is equally true that home- 
saved seeds, as a ride, tend to deteriorate 
rather than to improve the quality. The 
temptation to take the earliest sweet com, 
peas, and beans, and the earliest and fin est 
tomatoes and cucumbers for the table, is so 
great, that it is, as a rule, better to buy seeds 
than to save them. If one prefers to have 
his own seeds, let him start as if the produc¬ 
tion of seeds were the sole object of his 
garden. Mark the seed-bearing plants; in¬ 
dividual plants in the case of com, tomatoes, 
cucumbers, and others, and rows, or parts of 
a row, of peas, etc., and allow the first and 
best products of these to ripen for seed. If 
any are taken for use, let it be from the 
secondary product, not wanted for seed. 
Select seed from the earliest and best formed 
fruits, etc. With a certain class of plants, 
especially of the family to which the melon, 
squash, etc., belong, excellence on the table 
is a guide in selecting seed for next year’s 
use, provided, of course, that too many varie¬ 
ties have not been grown near' together. 
Leaves—Variety in Size and Shape. 
While the leaves of trees are, as a general 
thing, quite characteristic as to size and 
shape, circumstances may cause a wide de¬ 
parture from the usual form. Probably most 
persons, who go about with their eyes open, 
have noticed that the suckers from a tree 
that has been felled, often produce leaves 
many times larger than those ordinarily be¬ 
longing to the species. This is seen especi- 
TWIG OF PAPER MULBERRY. 
ally in the Basswood, and other trees show 
more or less of it. The Japanese tree, 
Paulownia imperiolis, which was introduced 
some years ago, and has been considerably 
planted as an ornamental tree, is remarkable 
for its freaks in the way of leaves. It is a 
tree that starts up readily if a root be injured, 
and this fact is taken advantage of in propa- , 
gating the tree from root-cuttings. When a 
Paulownia is cut down, suckers in abundance 
spring up from the stump. These new shoots, 
however they may be induced to start, push 
