June  14,  1900.  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER.  499 
Phaius  blcolor  as  a  Stove  Plant, 
^  Speaking  generally  the  Orchid  family  is  as  accommodating  as  it 
is  interesting  and  varied,  and  its  increasing  popularity  may  to  a  large 
-extent  be  attributed  to  this  fact.  The  time  was  when;Orchids  were 
generally  understood  to  be  aristocratic  flowers,  costly  to  begin  with, 
and  requiring  much  skill  and  money  to  cultivate  them  successfully. 
Partly  owing  to  the  efforts  of  collectors  and  tradesmen  in  bringing 
plants  idown  to  popular 
prices,  and  partly  to 
increased  knowledge  on 
the  side  of  growers, 
Orchids  no  longer  occupy 
isolated  positions  in  the 
establishments  of  a  few. 
They  are  to  he  found 
everywhere,  and  many 
an  amateur  with  only 
limited  glass  accommo¬ 
dation,  who  does  the 
work  himself,  has  reason 
to  be  proud  of  his  little 
collection  of  Orchids. 
It  IS  not  the  specialist 
alone  who  has  done  so 
much  to  popularise  the 
Orchid  family,  for  there 
are  numerous  establish¬ 
ments,  large  and  small, 
the  owners  of  which  have 
no  pretentions  to  be  what 
are  called  enthusiasts, 
and  yet  they  like  to  have 
a  few  Orchids.  These  are 
not  the  places  to  loolc  for 
new  and  rare  plants,  for 
hybrids  of  surpassing 
beauty,  and  specimens 
unique  on  account  of 
their  scarcity ;  but  it  is 
in  establishments  of  this 
kind  where  plants  of 
well-known  forms  are 
frequently  seen  blooming 
profusely  in  mixed  col¬ 
lections  of  stove  and 
other  plants.  Sometimes 
it  is  a  Dendrobium,  some¬ 
times  a  Catileya, a  Cypri- 
pedi  m,  OJontoglossum, 
■or  what  not ;  and  though 
admiration  may  be  con¬ 
ned  to  a  limited  few, 
these*  solitary  specimens, 
grown  among  miscella¬ 
neous  plants,  are  a  source 
of  extreme  pleasure  to  owners,  pride  to  gardeners,  and  illustrate 
beyond  argument  the  accommodating  nature  of  the  great  Orchid 
amily. 
The  illustration  (fig.  133)  is  a  case  in  point.  There  is  nothing 
extraordinary  about  Phaius  bicolor.  It  is  a  well-known  form  of  what 
may  be  classed  as  a  somewhat  neglected  family.  It  possesses  none  of 
the  gorgeous  beauty  of  some  of  its  relatives,  and  its  range  of  variety 
is  much  more  limited.  And  yet  the  Phaius  is  a  charming  Orchid.  It 
tolerates  the  conditions  of  the  ordinary  stove,  and  flourishes  in  the 
company  of  the  general  occupants  of  such  structures.  But  it  will  not 
brook  neglect,  and  more  than  once  I  have  seen  specimens,  half-hidden 
away  in  odd  corners,  only  failing  because  they  have  never  had  a  chance, 
and  yet  too  tenacious  to  give  up  life  altogether.  These  are  not 
pleasant  phases  of  mixed  Orchid  culture ;  but  when  one  sees  plants 
Buch  as  that  shown  in  the  engraving,  it  is  another  matter,  and  one 
realises  that  Phaius  ticolor  is  a  plant  well  worth  growing. 
A  glance  at  the  accompanying  picture  shows  a  healthy  well-grown 
plant  with  spikes  nearly  3  feet  high  clothed  with  a  wealth  of  flowers, 
.all  illustrative  of  good  culture.  Yet  this  plant  was  grown  in  no 
special  Orchid  house,  but  in  a  shady  part  of  the  stove  in  the  garden 
of  F.  PI.  Cook,  Esq.,  The  Grange,  Walton-on-Thames.  About  its 
treatment  Mr.  A.  Haynes,  the  gardener,  has  no  long  tale  to  tell,  but 
his  remarks  are  pointed  and  practical.  An  11-inch  pot  accommodates 
the  spec  men,  and  it  revels  in  its  compost  of  loam,  peat,  and  sand.  The 
tall  spikes  and  large  flowers  were  doubtless  built  up  by  frequent  appli¬ 
cations  of  liquid  manure  when  the  blooms  appeared,  and  the  healthy 
young  growths  promise  well  for  the  future.  In  short,  it  is  a  fine 
specimen  of  a  well-known  plant  grown  in  a  mixed  collection,  and  both 
Mr.  Cook  and  his  gardener  have  every  reason  to  be  proud  of  it. 
— G.  H.  Hollingworth. 
Cambridge  Lodge. 
Metropolitan  Orchid  enthusiasts  are  now  very  numerous,  and  it 
is  pleasant  to  know  that  there  are  yearly  accessions  to  the  ranks. 
Amongst  those  whose  names  have  become  familiar  over  the  entire 
Orchid-growing  world  is  K.  I.  Measures,  Esq.,  Cambridge  Lodge, 
Phodden  Eoad,  Camber¬ 
well,  who  h^s  for  many 
years  been  improving  his 
collection,  as  well  in 
quality  as  in  quantity. 
Generally  speaking  ama¬ 
teur  growers  devote  the 
major  portion  of  their 
energy  on  one  or  two 
sections,  and  what  others 
are  grown  are  simply 
tolerated,  and  are  not 
regarded  as  worthy  of 
any  special  attention.  In 
Mr.  Measures,  however, 
we  find  an  enthusiast  in 
the  broadest  ..  ense  of  the 
word,  whose  luve  for 
Orchids  embraces  every 
kind,  hybrid  and  variety, 
large  or  small,  modest  or 
ornate,  that  can  bu  found 
room  lor  in  his  wonderful 
London  garden.  And 
yet  as  one  inspects  the 
several  houses,  one  is 
forced  to  the  conclusion 
that  here  we  have  a 
general  specialist,  for  the 
Ma.sdevallia  collection  is 
probably  unique  as  re¬ 
gards  species,  the  Cypri- 
pediums  are  superb,  the 
Cymbidiums  lack  practi¬ 
cally  nothing,  and  so  on 
through  practically  the 
entire  Orchid  family. 
The  Cambridge  Lodge 
Orchidshavebeen  written 
of  in  the  pages  of  the 
Journal  of  Horticulture 
on  several  previous  occa¬ 
sions,  but  to  render 
honour  to  one  of  the  chief 
Orchid  growers  of  the 
metropolis,  or,  indeed,  t  f 
the  U  nited  Kingdom,they 
may  be  again  referred  to. 
We  can,  too,  at  this  moment  pay  a  tribute  to  Mr.  Measures  kindness 
in  allowing  all  interested  to  see  and  admire  the  beautiful  plants  he  has 
gathered  together  with  such  assiduous  care  and  at  such  great  expense. 
Thus  others  can  enjoy  the  sight  of  many  thousands  of  Orchids  in 
various  stages  of  growth,  from  the  newly  vegetating  seed  to  the  stately 
specimens  that  are  alike  in  only  one  respect,  and  that  is  tlie  excellent 
state  of  health.  Even  as  Mr.  Measures’  tastes  in  the  matter  of 
Orchids  are  omnivorous,  so,  too,  are  apparently  Mr.  II.  J.  Chapman  s 
abilities  as  a  cultivator,  for  one  and  all  are  in  such  condition  as  must 
be  gratifying  to  all  those  immediately  concerned  in  their  growth,  and 
is  matter  for  surprise  to  all  visitors  to  Cambridge  Lodge. 
When  one  considers  the  difficulties  that  stand  in  the^  way  of 
successful  Orchid  culture  in  such  a  densely  populated  district  as 
Camberwell,  and  then  sees  not  one,  but  hundreds  of  plants  that  have 
been  there  for  ten  years  or  more,  or  have  been  raised  there  from  seeds, 
one  becomes  more  and  more  astonished.  W e  do  not  mean  to  say  that 
the  flowers  attain  to  that  purity  of  colour  that  is  apparent  in  the 
country,  but  they  grow  to  a  considerable  size,  are  of  good  form  and 
splendid  substance.  It  must  be  a  task  of  considerable  magnitude  to 
Fig.  133. — Phaids  bicolor. 
