THE ENTRANCE 17 
Sobralia, a large flowered genus from Mexico. This orchid in its 
growth looks as if it belonged to the bamboos rather than the orchids. 
It is represented here by 3 species. 
Stanhopea, an interesting genus from tropical America. The flower 
spikes of this genus insist upon growing downward. The roots, there- 
fore, are never planted in crocks; but in slatted baskets that will per- 
mit the flower to come through the bottom. 
Thunia, a terrestrial genus most difficult to grow. 
Vanda, a genus from East India, Burma, Java, and the Philippines, 
represented here by 8 species. One species bears wonderful blue 
flowers, a color unusual among orchids. 
Zygopetalum, a genus from Brazil, represented here by 2 species. 
g 
The Palm House 
HE Palm House is the largest room in the Conservatory. It’ 
takes its name from the fact that the dominant species in the 
plantation in this room are palms and palm allies. The room has 
been arranged to bring out a landscape effect characteristic of a tropical 
region, with great columnar trunks of palms, overhanging vines, and 
dense undergrowth. Here tropical plants grow and feed and flower 
and fruit as in their native habitat. Here epiphytic vines drop their 
feeding roots from the girders and columns as they drop them from 
the trees in their native jungles; here ferns establish themselves in the 
fiber of young palm trunks and are carried high into the air by the 
growing trees, just as in their native home; here the bananas and the 
ria and the palm fruit just as they do in the land far to the south 
of us. 
The Palm House contains specimens representing all the genera 
of palms that can be grown in this temperature, and most of the speci- 
mens are already large enough to show the characteristics that are 
distinctive of the genus represented. Here and there palms are shown 
with their baby leaves, looking like draczenas or other membersofthe © 
Lily family; but for the most part the specimens shown here are well- 
grown ones. - The specimens in this room are all planted in solid beds 
of soil, and it will be noticed that they grow much better when so 
planted than when grown in tubs, as are the specimens in the 
Economic House. 
The palms in this room produce sufficient seed to enable the Con- 
servatory to grow all the palms needed for decoration in other parts of 
the Conservatory; and there is never a time when the visitor will not 
find at least a few species in fruit. 
The value of the collection shown here cannot well be estimated, 
because many of the palms and vines are of such size as to be inval- 
