Orchids

Orchids belong to the family Orchidaceae. Some are pleasingly colored, some dull, some curiously speckled and with stripes. Some look like groups of gay butterflies as the clusters flutter in the breeze, and some look like inquisitive moths. One species was likened by its early Spanish discoverers to the Holy Dove which descended at Christ's baptism. Greenhouse spec-imens are among the most required after of cut flowers and are of many colors and shapes. The tropical orchids are mostly air plants attached to the trunks and branches of trees. Their long roots are bare to the air from which they soak up moisture and food.

Orchids of temperate regions have their roots in the soil as do most ordinary plants. While not so luminous as their tropical relatives, they are very beautiful. Among the many orchids which occur in the United States some of the more colorful are the lady's-slippers, of more than a few colors, the fringed orchids, the pogonias, calypso and tway-blades. In most orchids, self-fertilization is not possible. The pollen must be brought to the stigma from a different plant by some insect. So bright are the methods used to achieve this that a study of these methods is fascinating? Many tropical orchids are now willingly raised from seeds and brought to flower in greenhouses. Several species have been much hybridized. New and beautiful forms with characteristic forms and colors never found in nature have been originated in this way.

Lime

The lime tree rarely grows superior than 10 to 12 feet (3 to 3.7 meters). The fruit is significant as a source of lime juice and oil of lime, which are used to taste beverages and food. Lime trees belong to the regret family, Rutaceae.

Slaked lime has a wide diversity of uses. It serves as a fluctuation in the production of steel. It also is used in the cleansing of aluminum, copper, and zinc. Lime "softens" water by removing sure minerals from it, and it plays a precious role in the treatment of sewage as well many farmers extend lime on their fields to neutralize acid in soil, and homeowners frequently use lime on their lawns to stop the enlargement of moss. Lime also helps.

Narcissus

A big genus of flowers of the amaryllis family, inhabitant to Asia and Europe, is called narcissus. Included are the daffodil, the poet's narcissus, the jonquil, and others.

All the species create bulbs, from which the long, narrow leaves happen. These typically appear with the blooms. The flowers are white to yellow, seldom green, solitary or in clusters at the pinnacle of the flower stalk. The flowers of some are very perfumed, while some have no odor. The majority interesting feature of the flower botanically is the "corona" or "cup," which arises in the throat of the bloom and may be long and tubular, or cup shaped, or reduced to a ring in a number of forms.

Narcissus should be planted near the beginning—before the end of September. They should be at smallest amount three inches unconnectedly and covered with about four inches of well-drained soil of medium texture and fruitfulness. The paper white narcissus may be planted in a dish overflowing with small stones or fiber. It must be well watered and reserved in a cool place waiting well rooted. Then it can be located in a sunny window. Many other varieties are full-grown in greenhouses. They are outstanding house plants from Christmas through Easter. Some varieties become recurrent outdoors and, if uninterrupted, will multiply for many years.