Vanda Cathcartii.—There was a well-grown specimen of this fine species
exhibited by Mr. Aldous, gardener to G. Heriot, Esq., Highgate, bearing
three spikes consisting of eleven flowers. It is a pity we so seldom see
this plant, as it is a real beauty. The plant was deservedly awarded a
Cultural Commendation.
Mr. Philbrick exhibited flowers of a fine series of _Cattleya Trianæ_,
among which some very nice varieties both of the light and dark coloured
sections.
[Illustration: PL. 132.
LÆLIA DAYANA.]
LÆLIA DAYANA.
[Plate 132.]
Native of Brazil.
Epiphytal. _Stems_ short, clustered, oblong, somewhat clavate,
invested by dry membranous pale brown scales, the stronger and younger
flowering stems with two or three blunter sheaths of a pale green
colour. _Leaves_ elliptic-oblong, acute, three inches long, fleshy
coriaceous, solitary. _Scape_ terminal, one-flowered, issuing from a
leafy spathe. _Flowers_ nearly four inches across, showy, on account
of the rich and strongly contrasted colouring of the lip; _sepals_
lanceolate acute, entire, recurved at the top, pale lilac-mauve;
_petals_ ovate acute, broader and somewhat deeper coloured than the
sepals; _lip_ three-lobed, the lateral lobes having the sides
convolute over the column, of a pale lilac-mauve, the truncately
rounded denticulate front edge recurved, and together with the
subquadrate emarginate undulated and recurved front lobe of a rich
purple-magenta, contrasting strongly with the diluted mauve-purple of
the sepals, petals, and base of lip; the _throat_ is white, marked by
seven deep purple carinæ, which are depressed and more or less wavy on
the edges. _Column_ quite enclosed, angulate on both sides at the
apex.
Lælia Dayana, _Reichenbach fil._, in _Gardeners’ Chronicle_, N.S.,
vi., 772.
Lælia pumila Dayana, _Burbidge_, _Floral Magazine_, N.S., t. 249.
This species belongs to a group of small-growing _Lælias_, several of
which are most beautiful. That of which we are at present treating is,
however, one of the best of this group. There are several forms of it to
be met with in gardens, but that which we have figured we consider to be
the type. It was first flowered by and named in honour of John Day,
Esq., of Tottenham, and was imported by Messrs. Low & Co., from Brazil,
some years ago, together with a batch of _L. pumila_, so that it is now
well distributed, and is to be seen in nearly all collections of any
importance. It is a most useful plant, and has many good qualities to
recommend it, amongst which we may mention that it is dwarf-growing as
well as free-blooming, and it is of easy cultivation, thriving under the
cool treatment given to Odontoglots, which it seems to enjoy. Our
drawing was taken from a well-grown plant in the collection of J.
Buchanan, Esq., of Oswald Road, Morningside, Edinburgh, who has some
well-grown specimens of the different classes of Orchids which are well
cared for by Mr. Grossart, the gardener.
_Lælia Dayana_ is a compact evergreen plant, growing about six inches
high, the stems being terminated by the short oblong leathery green
leaves; it produces its flowers with the young growth from the top of
the stem, and these are of large size, the sepals and petals being of a
light lilac-mauve and the lip of an intensely dark magenta-purple, with
a light throat, the crest much darker in colour. It blossoms during the
autumn months, and lasts about four weeks in bloom if the flowers are
kept dry.
This, as we have said, is a cool-house plant, doing well with the
Odontoglots if placed in pans or shallow pots amongst rough fibrous peat
with good drainage, filling the pots three parts full with a layer of
moss on the crocks, and the pot being then filled up with the peat,
adding some lumps of charcoal, which will encourage them to root more
freely. They will also do well in baskets suspended from the roof with
the same material, and they will thrive on blocks of wood, but grown in
the latter way they require more water in the active season.
When in pots or baskets they require to be kept moist in their growing
season, which continues during their period of flowering and some time
after. When their growth is completed less water will suffice, but their
stems must not be allowed to shrivel. Moreover, the soil must always be
kept in a sweet condition. If the soil decays remove it and supply
fresh, but in doing this carefully avoid injuring the roots. They must
be grown near the glass, with very little shade—just sufficient to keep
the burning sun-rays off them.
Insects must be well sought after and battled with. The White Scale will
attack them, and must be eradicated, as small-growing plants like this
cannot endure such enemies. Cleanliness is the chief virtue, not only in
cultivating Orchids but most other plants, and clean objects are always
worthy of admiration.
[Illustration: PL. 133.
ANGULOA EBURNEA.]
ANGULOA EBURNEA.
[Plate 133.]
Native of Colombia.
Epiphytal. _Pseudobulbs_ oblong attenuated at the apex, four inches
high, furrowed, dark green, sheathed while young with large leafy
scales, which gradually pass into the true leaves, becoming leafless
in age. _Leaves_ broadly elliptic-lanceolate acute, strongly ribbed
and of thin herbaceous texture. _Scape_ stout, springing from the base
of the pseudobulbs, eight to ten inches high, with one or two distinct
sheathing ovate acuminate pale green bracts. _Flowers_ large, solitary
at the top of the erect scape, subglobose, of a clear ivory white;
_sepals_ broadly orbicular-ovate, acute, cucullately concave, the
margins of the dorsal and the tips of the connivent lateral ones
recurved, white; _petals_ smaller, enclosed, concave, also white;
_lip_ white spotted with pink, turned up so to be parallel to the
column, three-lobed, the lateral lobes broad narrowed to a point which
is recurved, the middle lobe small, triangular, deflexed with a furrow
down the centre. _Column_ clavate, the apex with three projecting
subulate-triangular teeth directed downwards.
Anguloa eburnea, _Williams_, _Orchid Grower’s Manual_, 3 ed., 67;
_Id._, ed. 5, 91.
Of this small Orchidic genus there are but few species known in
cultivation. All those we have seen bear curiously-formed flowers, and
are very showy. The species now before us has the flowers of an ivory
white, and these when in bloom form a good contrast with the yellow
flowers of _Anguloa Clowesii_ and the beautifully spotted flowers of _A.
Ruckeri_ and its variety _A. Ruckeri sanguinea_, a figure of which
latter plant will be found at Plate 19 of our first volume. There are
besides other species, but those we have mentioned are among the most
showy.
_Anguloa eburnea_, our present subject, is an exceedingly rare and a
very distinct species, which indeed we have seen in very few
collections. We are indebted to Sir Trevor Lawrence, Bart, M.P., of
Burford Lodge, Dorking, whose collection, as is well known, abounds in
rare Orchids, for the opportunity of publishing the accompanying figure.
Like the other _Anguloas_ this is a plant of bold and majestic habit,
producing large dark green pseudobulbs several inches high, crowned with
the ample lively green foliage, which attains a foot and a half in
height. The flowers, which are ivory white, proceed from the base of the
pseudobulbs on scapes eight to ten inches in height. The character of
these plants is to show their flowers after their pseudobulbs are well
matured, and when the resting season has been completed, the young
growth also appearing at the same time. The flowers are generally
produced during the months of May and June, and last for several weeks
in beauty. It should, however, always be borne in mind that in order to
preserve them for any lengthened period, the flowers must be kept free
from contact with moisture, inasmuch as white blossoms seem to have a
greater tendency to spot than those of any other colours. Our present
subject makes a grand exhibition plant, and moreover, one which is quite
distinct in character.
We find the _Anguloas_ very accommodating, for in regard to their
cultivation they will do equally well either in the Cattleya house, or
in the cool Odontoglossum house. We cultivate them under both these
conditions, but when grown in the cooler atmosphere we generally take
them into the warmer house as they begin to show flower, and take them
back to the cool house after they have finished blooming. At this time
of the year—say June—the weather is warm, and we find that the cool
house suits them, and the conditions thus secured induce them to make
strong bulbs, which is a necessity if it is desired that they should
bloom freely.
We find rough fibrous peat to suit them as a compost, and they must have
good drainage. They should, moreover, be grown in pots. The roots
require to be kept moist during the time the plants are in vigorous
growth, but when their pseudobulbs are fully grown, which is the time
for rest, very little water is required, merely sufficient to keep the
bulbs plump. We find the best time for potting,—that is, if they require
it—to be just as they begin to grow, and show their flower buds. The
plants must be taken carefully out of their pots, and the soil being dry
it will readily fall from the roots; the old roots, then dead, must be
carefully cut away, and fresh ones will appear to supply their place.
After potting, the roots will become vigorous, which will enable them to
swell up their large pseudobulbs, and to perfect their flowers. They
must be grown near the glass in order to ripen their bulbs and
thoroughly mature their foliage, which, however, requires to be shaded
to keep it from getting scorched.
Insects should be always looked after to keep them in check. Sometimes
the scale attacks them, but this may easily be kept under by a sponge
and clean water. In this work of cleansing always avoid rubbing the
foliage too much, as this will cause bruises, which are very detrimental
to the plant and cause it to look unsightly; moreover, perfect and
uninjured foliage is a great adornment to a plant, and gives evidence of
good cultivation and judicious care. These plants are propagated by
dividing the pseudobulbs just as they begin to grow, leaving one or two
at the back of the leading one. The divided portions must be placed in
pots, using for compost the same kind of material as that recommended
above.
[Illustration: Pl. 134.
CALANTHE VESTITA WILLIAMSII.]
CALANTHE VESTITA WILLIAMSII.
[Plate 134.]
Native of Eastern Asia.
Terrestrial. _Pseudobulbs_ broadly ovate or ovate-oblong, often five
to eight inches long with a constriction above the middle, bluntly
angular, in age furrowed, pale grey or ash colour, partially sheathed
with membranaceous scales, and terminating in the remains of the
previous set of leaves. _Leaves_ large, broadly lanceolate acuminate,
a foot long, of herbaceous texture, and a pale green colour, nervosely
striate, deciduous, appearing after the decay of the flowers, two or
more from each bulb. _Scapes_ radical, tall, pale green, villous with
spreading hairs, and having a few sheathing glabrous scales below,
terminating in a raceme of fifteen to twenty or more flowers, with
hairy pedicels, each subtended by a smooth, spreading or deflexed
ovate-lanceolate boat-shaped bract, about an inch in length. _Flowers_
showy, about two inches across, _sepals_ oblong-lanceolate acute,
narrowed towards the base, the dorsal one white, the lateral ones
white on the upper, rosy crimson on the lower side at the base, the
tips being white; _petals_ similar in form, rather broader upwards,
bluntly acute, margined with rosy crimson, and pencilled in the lower
half with the same colour; _lip_ adnate with the column at the base,
its limb broadly roundish, deeply three-lobed, the lateral lobes
oblong-obtuse, the broadly cuneate centre lobe emarginate, entirely of
a dense bright rosy crimson, the discal region of a much deepened
tint, and the margins paler. _Spur_ slender, curved beneath and
shorter than the lip, rosy, with a green tip. _Column_ adnate with the
base of lip, the blunt projecting beak white.
Calanthe vestita Williamsii, _Moore_, supra.
The genus _Calanthe_ which we now again bring under the notice of our
readers, ranks amongst the most useful in cultivation for winter
decoration. Several species and varieties have been introduced within
the last few years, and have proved to be a great boon to plant growers
and others who are fond of flowers, as the whole of this bulbous class
produce their blossoms at a time when the beauties of nature are most
appreciated. What can be more charming than the original _C. vestita_,
and its red-eyed and yellow-eyed varieties with their drooping flower
spikes; or what more pleasing than the _C. Veitchii_, figured at Plate
31 of our first volume, a hybrid raised by the Messrs. Veitch & Sons, of
Chelsea, and a most useful decorative plant, its long spikes of rich
rose-pink flowers producing a most charming effect when intermixed with
the white-flowered kinds.
We have now another variety to make known, and one which, as will be
seen from the accompanying figure, adds a new charm to the genus, since
it will introduce among our winter blooming Calanthes a most distinct
and showy form that will be welcomed by all plant growers as being
superior in beauty to all those which have preceded it. It has been
named in compliment to Mr. B. S. Williams, of Holloway. Our drawing was
taken from a plant that had been blooming during the months of December,
January and February in the Victoria and Paradise Nurseries. It seems to
be of free growth, the pseudobulbs being like those of _C. vestita
Turneri_, the spikes of flowers being also of similar character and
developed at the same time of year.
_Calanthe vestita Williamsii_ is a deciduous plant, with pseudobulbs
from five to eight inches in height, and leaves a foot high and of a
light green colour. The flower-spikes, which are produced from the base
of the bulb, are two feet or more in length, and bear many flowers; the
sepals and petals are white, faintly margined and striped with bright
rosy crimson; the lip and column are of a deep rosy crimson, with an
intense crimson eye. It continues to flower on for three months, when
the bulbs are strong.
This novelty requires the same mode of treatment as that recommended for
_Calanthe Veitchii_ at Plate 31 of our first volume, where full cultural
instructions are given.
Orchids at Downside, Leatherhead.—It is always a great treat to see the
Orchid collection of W. Lee, Esq. We always find something to note for
the advantage of our subscribers, who, like ourselves, are interested to
read of things they have not already seen. What we are now about to
describe was certainly a grand sight, namely, a house full of
_Phalænopsis_, of which there were many hundred spikes of blossom
hanging in profusion over and amongst each other, and thus showing off
their various tints of colour to advantage. There was first the white
_P. amabilis_ with capital spikes, and then _P. grandiflora_, an
extraordinary large kind with well formed flowers of _P. Stuartiana_,
with its white spotted flowers, there were many varieties, differing in
their spotting; and there were also two fine plants of _P. Brymeriana_,
a beautiful and rare kind. The most prominent, however, was _P.
Schilleriana_, with many spikes including some beautifully coloured
forms, the mauve-coloured flowers of which, hanging amongst the white
forms, produced quite a charming _ensemble_. The middle and side tables
were one mass of colour, while on one side, for the whole length of the
house, at the back of the _Phalænopsids_ was placed a row of the chaste
and beautiful white-flowered _Angræcum citratum_, displaying as many as
thirty spikes, each from eighteen to thirty inches long; these charming
flowers overhanging the _Phalænopsis_ produced a most exquisite effect,
well worthy a long journey to see. We may without presumption
congratulate Mr. Lee on having produced so grand a picture.
There were besides the foregoing many other Orchids in bloom. Amongst
other things we were glad to see the _Lycastes_ accommodated with a very
nice house, and making quite an attractive show. These most useful
flowers were arranged on a central stage, and included several pure
white forms which, intermixed with those of high colours, were
remarkably effective.—B. S. W.
[Illustration: PL. 135.
LÆLIA AMANDA.]
LÆLIA AMANDA.
[Plate 135.]
Native of Brazil.
Epiphytal. _Stems_ thin, fusiform, a foot to a foot and a half in
height, diphyllous, invested by a sheathing mucronulate scale.
_Leaves_ cuneate ligulate, bluntly acute, six to nine inches long,
coriaceous, of a light green. _Peduncles_ two flowered issuing from a
small narrow spathe. _Flowers_ five to six inches across, delicately
coloured; _sepals_ ligulate-oblong acute, entire, of a flesh-colour or
pinkish blush with purple veins, the dorsal one three inches long and
three-fourths of an inch wide, the lateral ones somewhat longer and
broader, slightly falcate-deflexed; _petals_ linear-oblong blunt,
three inches long, and an inch broad, of the same pinkish-blush or
pale rosy-lilac as the sepals, but more distinctly veined; _lip_ three
inches long, rosy lilac, marked by longitudinal veins, with a
cordiform base, three-lobed, the lateral lobes folded over the column
and about twice its length, the front edge rounded and slightly wavy
the middle lobe projecting an inch and a half, roundish-oblong,
obtuse, apiculate, prettily veined with magenta, the few strongish
central veins parallel, the rest divergent and variously netted, the
tip paler, the veins continued through to the margin which is
crispulate. _Column_ decurved, semiterete, winged, magenta except
about the stigmatic hollow which is white, the apex toothed.
Lælia amanda, _Reichenbach fil._, in _Gardeners’ Chronicle_, N.S.,
xviii., 776.
Cattleya Rothschildiana, _of some gardens_.
We are pleased to be able to figure and describe such a distinct species
of _Lælia_ as the subject of our present plate, which forms quite a new
type in the genus. It produces very chaste looking flowers, and is
decidedly novel in the style of marking of its lip. There have been many
new varieties of the _L. elegans_ and _L. anceps_ type introduced of
late, but few have proved so good as those obtained many years before:
for example, of the forms of white _anceps_, none are so good as _L.
anceps Dawsoni_; and of the _elegans_ type, there are none to surpass
_L. elegans alba_ and the dark _L. elegans Turneri_, and other beautiful
sorts which might be named. Our drawing shows quite a distinct and novel
form as compared with these, and was taken from a plant in the fine
collection of W. E. Brymer, Esq., M.P., Ilsington House, Dorchester.
There are many fine Orchids included in Mr. Brymer’s collection.
_Lælia amanda_ is an evergreen species, with pseudobulbs attaining about
eighteen inches in height, and light green leaves. The flowers are
produced in upright spikes, the sepals and petals being of a pale tint
of rosy lilac, the lip bright rose with lilac, veined with brighter
rosy-purple. It blooms during the autumn, and according to Mr. Powell,
Mr. Brymer’s gardener, lasts for six weeks in beauty. It is a free
growing species, but like the forms of _L. elegans_ requires good
cultivation.
We find this kind does well either in a pot or basket. It should have
good drainage, and be grown in rough fibrous peat with lumps of charcoal
intermixed to keep the soil open, thus allowing the roots to run over it
and cling to the lumpy peat and charcoal. We find all this class of
_Lælias_ to thrive best elevated well above the pot or basket in which
they are grown; the roots then come down more freely, and can go either
into the compost or outside of it as they like, though in most cases it
will be found that they prefer the outside; and to us it appears very
delightful to see the fresh roots in this way enjoying the atmosphere of
the house in which they are cultivated. They do the same in their native
country, clinging to the trees, rocks, or any other firm substance on
which they can lay hold. By growing them here as we have indicated,
above the pot rim, the water passes off and most of the roots enjoy what
is natural to them. They require a good amount of moisture when in
vigorous growth, but should never be kept too wet, as this causes the
soil to become soddened, and in this way are brought about the many
failures that we hear of. Some cultivators imagine that because a plant
is in vigorous health and growing freely nothing can hurt it, but this
is a mistaken idea, as that really is the time during which they require
more than ordinary care and attention. On the other hand, if the plants
have become matured they will most probably suffer for it afterwards by
the rotting of the young growth. When kept too wet the plants often
become too sappy, and then after the growth is matured the cultivator
may be startled to find the stems and foliage turning black and rotting
away—a state of things which may frequently be attributed and often
traced to over-watering. Before proceeding to water plants their
requirements should be studied. Orchids require much forethought in
reference to their treatment, especially as regards the temperature of
the house compared with that of the atmosphere outside, the time of year
making a considerable difference, as does the condition of the plants.
All this has to be considered in reference to the treatment about to be
bestowed upon them. There is no doubt that Orchids, when understood, are
as easily cultivated as other plants, and some kinds more so, but on the
other hand some require extra care and judicious management as regards
light, air, potting material, and water; and unless a grower has some
idea what his particular plants require he will most likely meet with
failures. This is indeed sometimes the case with those who do know all
the various requirements of particular subjects, but there is no doubt
that where the treatment of a plant is well studied, a less amount of
failure will be experienced. If a plant will not succeed in one part of
a house, try it in another, and when a suitable spot is found let it
remain them.
We find _Lælias_ like to be as near the light as possible, and they will
thrive well in pots or baskets suspended from the roof, so that their
roots can throw themselves out where they please. They might indeed all
be grown in baskets if preferred.
[Illustration: PL. 136.
CYPRIPEDIUM CALURUM.]
CYPRIPEDIUM CALURUM.
[Plate 136.]
A Garden Hybrid.
Epiphytal. Acaulescent. _Leaves_ spreading, tufted, ensiform,
channelled especially towards the base, tapered to the apex, one and a
quarter inch wide, green. _Scape_ of a brownish-red colour, tall,
branched, bearing several flowers, with longish ovate-lanceolate
boat-shaped bracts at the ramifications. _Flowers_ large and handsome,
five inches in lateral, three and a half inches in vertical expansion;
_dorsal sepal_ oblong ovate bluntish, pale watery green with several
longitudinal purplish and darker green intermediate ribs, slightly
flushed with red, the purple tint stronger on the glossy exterior,
which is olive green, the extreme edge white; _lower sepal_ broad
ovate, half as long as the lip; _petals_ two and a half inches long,
over half an inch broad at the base, narrowing to the apex, pale
greenish white in the centre with an edge of wine-red one-eighth of an
inch wide which meets towards the end so that the apex is wholly
wine-red, the colour deeper and glossy outside with the central parts
olive, the inside covered over with pellucid hairs, those on the lower
half near the base longer and purplish; _lip_ bold, oblong obtuse,
nearly two inches long, the pouch deep wine-purple in front, paler
behind, the sides deeply inflexed and with a roundish projecting lobe
at the front angle of the aperture, greenish or creamy white with a
few irregular purple spots, the inside of the pouch more distinctly
spotted. _Staminode_ greenish white clothed with short stiff hairs,
transversely oblong or reniform with an apiculus and having a fringe
of short dark purple hairs on the front margin, the sterile lobe
roundish, fleshy, greenish white, hairy.
Cypripedium calurum, _Reichenbach fil._, in _Gardeners’ Chronicle_,
N.S., xv. 41.
The class of hybrid _Cypripediums_ is becoming a numerous one, and some
of the novelties are very distinct and beautiful, for although it may be
difficult to beat the original types, yet in some cases they are
superseded as regards colour, shape or form. We are greatly indebted to
the Messrs. Veitch & Sons, of Chelsea, and others, for the good they
have done in taking up the fertilisation of Orchids, and in raising the
different forms which have appeared. The Lady’s Slippers are amongst the
easiest of Orchids to fertilize, and the plants likewise take less time
than any others of the family to attain the flowering stage. We trust
the hydridisers will continue their good work, as there is yet such an
abundance of choice materials to work upon, both as regards form and
colour, and that by careful selection some wonderful changes may yet be
wrought. We admit that a great deal has been accomplished, but there is
yet a large field remaining unoccupied for those who feel disposed to
take an interest in this most important and pleasing work.
The class of Orchids to which our present subject belongs, is one of the
most useful for the decoration of our Orchid houses and exhibition
tables, as they are free growing and profuse blooming plants, the
flowers being also of long duration. _Cypripedium calurum_ of which we
now present our readers with a portrait is a continuous flowering
variety, for as soon as one blossom dies off another appears, and so on
until the spike has exhausted itself; and then when the new growths are
made, fresh flower spikes appear, after the manner of _C. Sedenii_. It
is a hybrid between _C. longifolium_ and _C. Sedenii_, the latter itself
being a hybrid between _C. longifolium_ and _C. Schlimii_, and was
raised by the Messrs. Veitch & Sons, of Chelsea, to whom we are indebted
for the opportunity of preparing our drawing, and who have a most
wonderful lot of these beautiful hybrid Cypripediums, some others of
which we hope to figure in due time.
_Cypripedium calurum_ is an evergreen species of graceful habit, with
long arching bright green foliage. The flower spikes are branched,
several flowers appearing at the same time. They are large and
handsomely coloured, the dorsal sepal reddish-green striped with pale
purplish-crimson, the petals also pale crimson darkening towards the tip
to a rich crimson, and having one green vein down the centre; the
exterior of the lip is deep crimson, the inside greenish white, spotted
with dull purplish-crimson. Each flower lasts for several weeks in
perfection.
We find this plant does well grown in pots with rough fibrous peat or
fibrous loam mixed with some leaf soil, and good drainage. It requires a
moderate supply of water during the growing and flowering season. In
fact, these plants may be said to be always growing and blooming, so
that they should always be kept moist at the roots, as they have no
succulent pseudobulbs to support them. We grow this plant at the cool
end of the East India house with other Cypripediums, but it will thrive
well in any ordinary stove. It is propagated by dividing the plant when
there are several growths; this operation we find it best to perform
just as the new growths begin to appear.
Odontoglossum sceptrum.—We feel great pleasure in acknowledging the
receipt of a very fine spike of _Odontoglossum sceptrum_, from the
collection of W. McDonald, Esq., Woodlands, Perth. The panicle was
eighteen inches in length, and bore seventeen perfectly formed flowers.
It must have been cut from a well grown specimen. The sepals were large,
of a deep chocolate-brown, streaked and margined with yellow; the petals
were irregularly lobed at the edge, yellow, blotched with the same
colour as the sepals; and the lip was yellow with chocolate-brown on the
front part. This is a fine cool-house Orchid, and a native of New
Grenada.—B. S. W.
[Illustration: PL. 137.
ONCIDIUM TIGRINUM.]
ONCIDIUM TIGRINUM.
[Plate 137.]
Native of Mexico.
Epiphytal. _Pseudobulbs_ ovate, compressed, blunt-edged, two or
three-leaved, three inches in length. _Leaves_ oblong-lanceolate
acute, leathery in texture, folded and sheathing at the base. _Scape_
radical, two feet long, bearing a panicle of numerous showy blossoms.
_Flowers_ distinct in character from the marked contrast presented
between the small tiger-striped sepals and petals, and the ample
bright yellow lip, having a delicious odour of violets; _sepals_
linear-oblong acute, wavy and revolute at the margins, the lateral
ones curving upwards laterally, so that they all stand above the base
of the lip, the colour yellowish green, heavily blotched with
transverse bands of dark chestnut-brown; _petals_ similar to the
sepals in form and colour, curving upwards laterally like the lateral
sepals; _lip_ three-lobed, of a pure chrome yellow, paler on the outer
side; the lateral lobes oblong with rounded angles, almost
semicircular, entire, flat; the middle lobe large, about an inch in
depth, and one and three-quarters inch in breadth, transversely
oblong-reniform, emarginate, apiculate, with a distinct basal isthmus
on which is seated a furrowed ridge or crest, one-eighth of an inch
high, having a three-lobed tubercle in front. _Column_ short, yellow,
with two lateral oblong hatchet-shaped wings.
Oncidium tigrinum, _Llave et Lexarza_, _Novorum Vegetabilium
Descriptiones_, fasc. 2, 36; _Lindley_, _Genera and Species of
Orchidaceous Plants_, 203; _Id._ _Folia Orchidacea_, Oncidium, No.
157; _Reichenbach fil._, in _Walpers’ Annales Botanices Systematicæ_,
vi., 794.
Oncidium Barkeri, _Lindley_, _Botanical Register_, 1841, Misc. 174;
_Id._ _Sertum Orchidaceum_, t. 48; _L’Illustration Horticole_, t. 2;
_Paxton’s Magazine of Botany_, xiv., 97.
_Oncidium tigrinum_ is one of the most beautiful and distinct of the
many yellow-flowered species of Oncids. It is a free-growing and
free-blooming species, of compact growth, with a moderate-sized
branching spike, and flowers of long duration. It blooms at a time, in
autumn, when Orchid flowers are most welcome. Another good quality of
this plant is, that it will thrive well in the cool house, with
Odontoglots, the bright colour of its blossoms proving to be extremely
effective among the white flowers of _O. Alexandræ_. It grows about the
same size as that plant, and has good evergreen foliage, which is a
great attraction in any plant, and helps to show the flowers off to
advantage. Our drawing, which was taken from a specimen grown in the
Victoria Nursery, represents one of the best forms we have seen. There
are smaller varieties of this species, but they are all worth
cultivating on account of their showy colours. This was, at one time, a
rare plant, but latterly our collectors have been able to import it more
freely.
_Oncidium tigrinum_ is, as we have remarked, an evergreen species, with
dark brownish green pseudobulbs, about three inches in height; and
usually produces two leaves, about a foot in length, of a lively green
colour, and a branching spike growing two feet long, and furnished with
many handsome blossoms—the sepals and petals of which are greenish
yellow, spotted and barred with brown, and the lip is bright yellow. It
blooms during the autumn and winter seasons, and continues in bloom for
six weeks. We grew this plant many years ago under the name of _O.
Barkeri_; it was very rare at that time, and we grew it with the
Cattleyas, but we have found since, that it succeeds well in the
Odontoglossum house. Since the plants may be bought at a cheap rate,
many duplicates of this species should be grown, for its brilliant
golden flowers produce a grand effect among the white and delicate tints
of _O. Alexandræ_. The yellow colour is required for contrast, and their
spikes being similar in habit of growth, they associate well together.
We find the best material to grow them in is rough fibrous peat, with
good drainage, which should be thus applied:—fill the pots three-parts
full of broken crocks and charcoal mixed together; add a few lumps of
charcoal to the peat, which helps to keep it open, moreover, the roots
of the plant like to cling to it; let the plant be elevated on this
material three inches above the pot rim, from which the roots will be
delighted to run down, and can either go inside or work over the
material, which should always be kept sweet and not allowed to stagnate.
The plant is easy of cultivation if its requirements are attended to. It
must be kept moist during the growing season, not, however, continually
soaked with water, but just sufficient being given to keep the plant in
vigorous state of growth. When the growth is completed, give just enough
water to keep the pseudobulbs and foliage in a good plump state.
[Illustration: PL. 138.
LÆLIA ALBIDA.]
LÆLIA ALBIDA.
[Plate 138.]
Native of Mexico.
Epiphytal. _Pseudobulbs_ ovate, clustered, about the size of pigeon’s
eggs, becoming furrowed in age, marked about the middle by a
transverse ring or scar, diphyllous. _Leaves_ narrow lanceolate acute,
somewhat leathery, of a deep green colour. _Scape_ terminal, slender,
two or three times as long as the leaves, bearing a raceme of five to
eight flowers, and furnished with rigid sessile ovate bracts.
_Flowers_ white, powerfully sweet-scented, with an odour resembling
that of the glandular leaves of the Chinese Primrose, but having a
honey-like sweetness superadded, rather small as compared with other
species of the genus, being a little over two inches in expanse in
each direction; _sepals_ oblong-lanceolate acute, spreading, plane,
mucronulate, ivory white; _petals_ oblong ovate, subundulate, rather
shorter than the sepals, recurved at the tip, mucronulate, also of an
ivory white; _lip_ obovate, three-lobed, the lateral lobes obtuse, of
a rosy hue externally, inside veined with red-pink, erect, that is
folded up against the column, the middle lobe roundish-oblong obtuse,
obscurely apiculate, recurved, slightly tinted with rose; disk with
three yellow crests running out in the front lobe into a pale red bar
or central line, with rosy veins on each side which give a faint rosy
tint to the surface, the two lateral crests yellow spotted with dark
reddish-purple. _Column_ elongate, glabrous, crimson-purple on the
inner face.
Lælia albida, _Bateman_, in _Botanical Register_, 1839, misc. 4;
_Lindley_, _Botanical Register_, 1839. t. 54; _Hooker_, _Botanical
Magazine_, t. 3957.
Bletia albida, _Reichenbach fil._, in _Walpers’ Annales Botanices
Systematicæ_, vi., 428.
In _Lælia albida_ we introduce to the notice of our readers a very
pretty small-growing Orchid, which produces good useful flower spikes
according to the vigour of the pseudobulbs, and which should therefore
be grown in every collection. It blooms during the autumn months, and is
a plant of quite a distinct character. We have many large-flowered grand
species of this genus unsurpassed by any other Orchids, but the smaller
growing kinds come in very useful where space is an object, and can be
grown suspended from the roof, or on back wall of the house provided
they get plenty of light and air, which they require in order to enable
them to grow vigorously and flower freely. We are indebted to Herbert J.
Adams, Esq., Roseneath, Enfield, for the specimen from which our drawing
was taken, and which had been very successfully grown in his collection.
_Lælia albida_ is an evergreen plant, and of compact-growing habit, as
will be seen from the accompanying figure. It produces its flower scapes
from the top of the pseudobulb after the growth is completed, and the
spikes assume a drooping character. The sepals and petals are white, the
lip being rose-purple. It blooms in December and January and lasts for
three weeks in beauty. There are several varieties of it, varying in the
colour of the lip and the size of the flower.
These plants, we find, do well on a block of wood, or in a basket
suspended from the roof of the Mexican house, with as little shade as
possible, and they require a good supply of water in the growing season.
If grown on blocks they require syringing every day during their season
of growth—sometimes twice a day, morning and afternoon, according to the
weather and the state of the atmosphere of the house in which they are
grown. A great deal depends upon this point. It is a good plan to take
the blocks and soak them in water until the blocks and roots are
thoroughly saturated, and when this is done they will not require
syringing so often. If grown in baskets with rough fibrous peat or
sphagnum moss, they must be well drained by mixing a few pieces of
charcoal with the peat. They will also succeed well in the warmest end
of the Odontoglossum house.
Mr. May, the gardener at Roseneath, is very successful in cultivating
these _Lælias_, and they well repay all the attention that is given
them. The plants must be kept from insects; they are subject to the
white scale, which can easily be kept under when taken in time. Whenever
a plant shows signs of insects, let them be at once eradicated, as
delays are dangerous, and through procrastination much mischief may be
done before the remedy is applied.
Dendrobium crassinode Barberianum.—We have received a noble example of
this very fine Orchid from W. Turner, Esq., Over Hall, Winsford,
Cheshire. The stem bore twenty-four flowers of large size, and the
specimen from which it was cut was the best-grown plant we have seen. It
had sixteen bulbs, averaging from eighteen inches to two feet in length,
all in full bloom at one time, and presented a most glorious spectacle.
The sepals and petals are of a beautiful clear white, tipped with rich
purple, and the lip is white with a deep orange blotch at the base. We
are pleased to be able to mention Mr. W. Turner’s name in association
with so grand a plant, for he has been well known for many years as one
of the oldest of our Orchid growers.—B. S. W.
[Illustration: PL. 139.
ARUNDINA BAMBUSÆFOLIA.]
ARUNDINA BAMBUSÆFOLIA.
[Plate 139.]
Native of India: Nepal, Sylhet, Burmah, etc.
Terrestrial. _Stems_ erect, terete, striate, with the habit of a small
bamboo, three to five feet high, as thick as a stout quill or one’s
little finger, polyphyllous. _Leaves_ a span to a foot in length,
distant, distichous, ensiform, with the base sheathing the stem, and
the apex attenuated, erect and spreading, the upper ones on the
flowering stems reduced to sheathing bracts, which are numerous,
short, ovate acute, spreading at the tips, so that the _peduncles_ are
ochreate, of a whitish green, and terminate in a spike, sometimes
branched, of several showy blossoms. _Flowers_ large and effective,
measuring about two and a half inches across; _sepals_ narrow
lanceolate, entire, the dorsal one erect, the two lateral ones
sub-parallel, directed downwards, of a pale pink colour; _petals_
ovate, plane, spreading laterally, of a deeper pink than the sepals,
with a rose-pink stripe down the centre; _lip_ three-lobed, the
lateral segments rolled over the column, pink, abruptly abbreviated in
front, where they are recurved and deeper in colour; middle segment
larger, bipartite, the divisions bluntly obovate-oblong, divaricate
and crisped, of a magenta-rose, the throat white in the lower part,
marked with white lines on each side, the disk bearing two fleshy
undulated lamellæ or crests, and a third shorter straight one between
them. _Column_ clavate, semi-terete, lying parallel with the lip.
Arundina bambusæfolia, _Lindley_, in _Wallich’s Catalogue_, No. 3751;
_Id._ _Genera and Species of Orchidaceous Plants_, 125; _Griffith_,
_Notulæ ad Plantas Asiaticas_, iii., 329, t. 314; _Wight_, _Icones
Plantarum Indiæ Orientalis_, v., t. 1661; _Reichenbach fil._, in
_Walpers’ Annales Botanices Systematicæ_, vi., 457.
Cymbidium bambusifolium, _Roxburgh_, _Hortus Bengalensis_, 63.
Bletia graminifolia, _Don_, _Prodromus Floræ Nepalensis_, 29.
The plant we now introduce to the notice of our readers is very distinct
from the ordinary types of Orchids, and is remarkable for its reed-like
stems, and its very charming and beautiful blossoms. Its habit is to
keep flowering in succession for a long period. When better known it
will be much sought after; at present there are but few plants in
cultivation, at least very few have come under our notice. There exist
several varieties which vary in the colouring of their flowers; that
which we now figure being a very good type. We are indebted to T. D.
Cunningham Graham, Esq., Dunlop House, Stewarton, Ayrshire, for his
kindness in sending the specimens for the use of our artist. A
description of the Orchids at Dunlop House will be found under plate 118
of our present volume.
_Arundina bambusæfolia_ is an evergreen plant, with reed-like or
bamboo-like stems, bearing foliage of a light green colour; the sepals
and petals are pale magenta-rose, the lip rich rose shaded with magenta.
It grows, in its natural state, from three to five feet in height, and
produces its flowers from the top of the stems about July, continuing to
bloom for some time during the summer and autumn months. Mr. Kemp, the
gardener at Dunlop House, thinks it a most useful plant.
We find this Orchid to do best when grown in a pot, with good drainage.
The material most suited to it is good rough fibrous peat and loam mixed
together. It is a free-rooting species, but has no thick fleshy bulbs
from which to draw support. These Orchids which have these reed-like
stems require to be potted in a richer soil than others; they grow after
the manner of the _Sobralia_, and require similar treatment, that is,
the treatment of the cool end of the East India house, with a good
supply of water during the growing season, and to have the soil kept
moderately moist when at rest; the plants need plenty of light, but
should be shaded from the rays of the burning sun.
They must be kept free from insects, or the thrips will soon injure
their foliage. They are propagated by dividing the crowns, and they also
produce plants on the stems, which can be taken off and potted when they
have formed roots. We saw some fine plants of this Orchid in the
collection of W. Lee, Esq., of Leatherhead, which were producing shoots
in this way quite freely, and these being taken off, soon formed young
established plants.
Phaius tuberculosus (for figure, see plate 91 of our second volume.)—We
are much pleased to be able to again record the flowering of this plant
in the collection of A. Sillem, Esq., Laurie Park, Sydenham. It is
generally considered a most difficult plant to cultivate, but here it
grows most luxuriantly, no less than four spikes having been produced on
three plants last February, all of which were distinct varieties. Mr.
Billiard, the gardener, seems to have hit upon a plan of cultivation
that suits this plant admirably, and great credit is due to him for his
perseverance in the matter. We were so much interested in this
successful treatment that we paid a visit to this collection to
ascertain the mode of procedure, and Mr. Billiard was kind enough to
give us the result of his experience, which we here reproduce for the
benefit of our readers. “Our plants,” he writes, “have been grown on the
northeast side of a sun-roofed house, close to the glass, in a
temperature from 65° to 70°. We keep the sun from them as much as
possible. They are potted in equal parts of peat and moss, with a small
quantity of sharp sand, and plenty of crocks and charcoal as drainage.
When making their growth they delight in an abundance of moisture at the
roots. We find it necessary to sponge them weekly, as red spider, thrips
and green fly are particularly fond of these plants. This year from
three plants we have four spikes, which have opened twenty-three
flowers; last year the same plants had one spike each, which gave us
eighteen flowers in all.”—B. S. W.
[Illustration: PL. 140.
CYMBIDIUM AFFINE.]
CYMBIDIUM AFFINE.
[Plate 140.]
Native of Assam and Khasya.
Epiphytal. _Acaulescent_, with thick fleshy roots, forming a short
rootstock, from which dense tufts of graceful erectly spreading
foliage is produced. _Leaves_ distichous, erecto-patent, elongate,
linear lorate, acute, channeled, three-fourths of an inch broad, dark
green. _Scape_ stout, green, having just beneath the inflorescence two
or three loosely sheathing leafy bracts; _raceme_ six to
eight-flowered, decurved, terminal, each flower having a short ovate
acute bract at the base of its pale green pedicel. _Flowers_ about two
and a half inches broad, and as much in depth, ivory-white, with a
pleasant scent of almonds; _sepals_ linear-oblong, somewhat broader
upwards, acute, half an inch broad, the dorsal one incurved, and
arching forwards over the lip, the lateral ones two inches long,
somewhat widened at the base and apex, the rounded bases united with
the base of the lip, to form a short blunt chin; _petals_ linear,
about as long as the sepals, but distinctly narrower, one-fourth of an
inch wide, acute; _lip_ three-lobed, saccate at the base, the side
lobes folded close to the column, the front edge produced rounded and
slightly spreading, spotted, as is also the mouth of the tube, with
pale magenta, the front lobe hairy, half an inch long, with a narrowed
claw-like base, ovate, with a wavy margin, white, with a central
straight oblong, and lateral divergent blotches of magenta, the
central one continued into a yellowish streak, which is produced
backwards to the deeper yellow crest of two abruptly elevated
papillose plates, which are further continued into two yellow lines.
_Column_ white, one and a half inch long, curved, winged.
Cymbidium affine, _Griffith_, _Notulæ ad Platas Asiaticas_, iii., 336,
t. 291; according to _Lindley_, _Contributions to the Orchidology of
India_, in _Journal of Linnean Society_, iii., 28; _Reichenbach fil._,
in _Gardeners’ Chronicle_, N.S., x., 810; _Floral Magazine_, t. 346.
Cymbidium micromesum, _Lindley_, _Journal of Linnean Society_, iii.,
29, _fide Reichenbach_.
_Cymbidium_, though a small genus of Orchids, contains within its limits
some beautiful species, varying considerably in colour; indeed, most of
them are worth growing. That which we now illustrate is a very chaste
and pretty species, and is still quite rare; very few plants having come
under our notice. We received the grand specimen here figured from the
fine collection of G. Nevile Wyatt, Esq., Lake House, Cheltenham, who
takes a great interest in the cultivation of good Orchids, and from whom
at different times we have received some fine cut specimens, especially
of the forms of _Cattleya Trianæ_.
_Cymbidium affine_ is an evergreen species, which in its growth
resembles _C. Mastersii_ and _C. eburneum_, but the leaves are somewhat
broader. It has dark green graceful foliage, and tall, erect scapes,
from which the drooping flower racemes depend. The sepals and petals are
of an ivory white, and the lip is white, spotted with dull
magenta-purple. The plant blooms during the autumn months, and continues
in flower for several weeks if the blossoms are kept dry. It will be
found to be a most useful plant for decorative purposes, as its blossoms
are so beautifully developed along with its graceful green foliage.
This class of plants is well cultivated by Mr. Simcoe, the gardener at
Lake House, who grows them as we do, in pots, with good drainage. We
have found them to do best in good fibrous loam, as they have thick
fleshy roots to support, and experience has convinced us that they
require something stronger than peat to feed upon, and consequently we
have substituted loam for peat, but it must have some charcoal mixed
with it so that the soil may be kept open, which is quite essential for
the plants; they require a good supply of water in the growing season,
and when the soil is kept porous and open the water passes off readily,
and does not stagnate, which is deleterious to all plants. When the
growth is completed, less water will suffice, but just enough should be
supplied to keep the soil damp, for their thick fleshy roots always
require to be in a fresh plump condition, and in a state of growth.
We find these _Cymbidiums_ thrive well in the Cattleya house, kept as
fully exposed to the light as possible, but shaded from the sun, for if
in the warm summer months the sun is allowed to shine upon them their
foliage is apt to sustain injury. When the sun is on the decline it will
do them no harm, and the early morning sun will be beneficial to them;
the foliage must, however, never be allowed to be wet when the sun comes
upon the plants, or it will most probably become spotted.
The Cattleyas at Downside (continued from plate 134).—The Cattleya house
at Downside, when we saw it a few weeks ego, presented a most
magnificent picture, there being at the time several hundred expanded
flowers of _C. Trianæ_, distributed over the whole length of a house one
hundred feet long, and showing a variety of colouring, which thus
displayed amongst the green foliage was truly marvellous. This
collection comprises some of the best kinds in cultivation. It would
take too much space to describe them here, but we hope to illustrate
some of the most striking among them in our subsequent volumes.
[Illustration: PL. 141.
DENDROBIUM LINAWIANUM.]
DENDROBIUM LINAWIANUM.
[Plate 141.]
Native of China.
Epiphytal. _Stems_ erect, club shaped, somewhat flattened, light
green, one to two feet high, retaining the leaves for two years, when
mature becoming deeply furrowed and swollen below the nodes, the
internodes partially sheathed by the withered bases of the leaves: it
is these tumid internodes which give the appearance of a necklace,
whence the name _moniliforme_ came to be applied, though erroneously,
to the plant. _Leaves_ distichous, oblong obtuse, obliquely
emarginate, pea-green. _Peduncles_ from the axils of the leaves of the
two-year old stems, or from the joints whence the leaves have fallen,
two to three flowered, with small acute appressed bracts. _Flowers_
bright coloured and pleasing, three inches across; _sepals_ oblong
acute, venose, their base produced into a blunt striated spur, white
below and of a bright rosy pink in the upper half; _petals_ ovate, of
the same colour as the sepals; _lip_ ovate, cucullate, reflexed,
obscurely three-lobed, attenuated at the base, and serrulate on the
margin, with an elevated pubescent crest along the disk, white below,
having two crimson spots about the centre, the apical portion wholly
rich magenta-crimson. _Column_ short, the lip articulated at the end
of its prolonged base.
Dendrobium Linawianum, _Reichenbach fil._ _MS._; _Id._, _Walpers’
Annales Botanices Systematicæ_, vi., 284.
Dendrobium moniliforme, _Lindley_, _Botanical Register_, t. 1314, non
_Swartz_; _Hooker_, _Botanical Magazine_, t. 4153; _Paxton_, _Magazine
of Botany_, iii., 77; _Maund_, _Botanist_, iv., t. 194; _Annales de
Gand_, 1847, t. 137.
This _Dendrobium Linawianum_ is a very old inhabitant of our Orchid
houses, and a most distinct and beautiful kind; it is better known,
however, under the name of _D. moniliforme_, which was formerly applied
to it in error, but which it will no doubt long retain. Amongst the
older race of Orchid cultivators, we used to exhibit it under the name
of _D. moniliforme_ at the Chiswick and Regent’s Park Exhibitions, where
it was shown in the form of large specimen plants, and formed one of the
prettiest and most distinct looking Orchids in the show. Although
amongst the numerous novelties, which have since been introduced, there
have been many which produce splendid flowers as regards size, form, and
colour, there has been one only that is at all similar to the present
species, and that, which Professor Reichenbach has named _D. nobile
formosanum_, and which is very much like _D. Linawianum_ both in its
growth and in its flowers, we imported about two years ago from the
Island of Formosa. The drawing, of our present subject, was taken from a
remarkably fine specimen grown in the collection of G. W. Law-Schofield,
Esq., New-Hall-Hey, Rawtenstall, near Manchester; the specimen was about
two feet high and as much through, and was one mass of blossoms. Mr.
Wise, the gardener, tells us it has flowered in this way for several
years; and we may safely say that it is one of the best grown plants
that have yet come under our notice.
_Dendrobium Linawianum_ is an evergreen species with flattish
club-shaped stems, which are of a light green colour, and remarkable for
becoming swollen just beneath the nodes. The leaves are of a pea-green
colour, and the flowers are borne on the stems of the second year, in
twos or threes at every node. The sepals and petals are white at the
base, and bright rosy pink in the upper half, while the lip is white,
beautifully tipped with bright magenta-crimson. The flowers are produced
during the winter and spring months, and last in perfection for two or
three weeks. It may be had in flower much later by retarding the plant
after it has finished its growth.
The present is a free-growing species if the plant is in good health. It
begins to grow when the flowering is over, and this is the best time for
repotting if the plant requires it; but care must be taken not to over
pot it, as this is dangerous in some cases, especially if the soil
should get into a bad state, for then the roots go rotten, and the plant
becomes sickly. If this should happen, shake away all the soil from the
roots and wash them well, afterwards repotting the plant in as small a
pot as the roots will allow; the fresh roots will then begin to work
about the new soil. Good drainage must always be given; and the plant
must be well elevated above the rim of the pot. The most suitable
potting material is good rough fibrous peat mixed with lumps of
charcoal, which will keep the soil open, and allow the water to pass off
freely. Over watering is dangerous, but the plants require to be kept
moderately moist at the roots during the growing season. To avoid risk
from excess of water, the pots should be three parts full of drainage
material. When the growth is completed, give sufficient water to keep
the stems plump until they show signs of flowering; then give a little
once or twice a week, the quantity and frequency of the application
depending mainly on the nature of the potting material; if it be rough
and porous, the plant will require it, and a slight syringing over the
soil and among the roots during a warm day, will also be beneficial.
We grow our plants at the cool end of the East Indian house, giving them
plenty of light, and no more shade than is necessary to keep the foliage
from burning. Light is the grand agent in ripening the stems; and it is
thorough ripeness which induces them to make vigorous growth, and to
develope their flowers freely.
Propagation is effected by dividing the stems just as they begin to
start into growth, leaving two or three old bulbs at the back of the new
one. It is the better plan to cut them a short time before they are
parted; and this should be done with great care. After dividing, place
them each in a small pot, with good drainage, and similar potting
material to that previously recommended. They thrive well in sphagnum
moss, but we prefer the peat.
[Illustration: Pl. 142.
ZYGOPETALUM BURKEI.]
ZYGOPETALUM BURKEI.
[Plate 142.]
Native of Demerara.
Epiphytal. _Pseudobulbs_ clustered, narrow oblong, over two inches
long, erect, shining, tetragonal, the surface furrowed, diphyllous.
_Leaves_ elongate-lanceolate acuminate, nervose, somewhat leathery in
consistence. _Scape_ radical, pale green, bearing a raceme of four or
five flowers, furnished with ovate pale green bracts at the base of
the pedicels. _Flowers_ about two inches across, of a peculiar and
distinctive character; _sepals_ ovate-lanceolate, the lateral ones
deflexed, bright green, with about seven wavy close-set longitudinal
bands of dark umber-brown, the bars having a tendency to break up into
lines of spots, wholly green outside; _petals_ spreading, of the same
form and colour as the sepals; _lip_ unguiculate, auricled on both
sides in front of the claw, obovate with a broad rounded apex,
undulated margin, and furnished behind the disk with a callus or ruff
of thirteen crimson plaits or ribs. _Column_ thick, greenish, galeate,
with two projecting linear auricles.
Zygopetalum Burkei, _Reichenbach fil._, in _Gardeners’ Chronicle_,
N.S., xx., 684.
This new species is a very pretty free-blooming plant. It belongs to a
genus that is well known to plant growers, and amongst the species of
which there are some grand decorative plants; indeed, we generally find
some of these plants wherever there is a stove, even if Orchids
generally are not professed to be grown. _Zygopetalum Mackayi_, _Z.
maxillare_, and _Z. Gautieri_, are the most useful. Of late some new
hybrids have been introduced, namely, _Z. Sedeni_ and _Z. Clayi_, which
latter will be found figured at Plate 50 of our second volume. The
species now under notice was introduced by the Messrs. Veitch & Sons, of
Chelsea; and in their fine collection it bloomed last November, and was
exhibited at South Kensington, gaining a First Class Certificate. It
will be found to be a most useful species for general cultivation. We
believe Messrs. Veitch’s to be the only plant that has yet flowered in
this country.
_Zygopetalum Burkei_ is a native of Demerara, and was found, it appears,
by Sir Robert Schomburgk some forty years since, but had not been
introduced until recently sent home by Messrs. Veitch’s collector, Mr.
Burke, after whom it is named. It is an evergreen species, with long
narrow erect ribbed four-cornered pseudobulbs, and light green foliage;
the sepals and petals are green, spotted and barred with brown, and the
lip is white, with a crest of crimson stripes on ribs. It blooms during
the autumn months and lasts for several weeks in bloom.
The East India house is the most suitable place in which to cultivate
it, for most of the species of _Zygopetalum_ like the temperature
therein maintained, and, indeed, they thrive well in any warm stove.
This new species will no doubt require as a root medium the same
material as the rest of the genus, that is, rough fibrous peat and loam.
As they generally have thick fleshy roots, they require an abundant
supply of moisture during the growing season; but of course a less
liberal supply will suffice after the growth has been completed, when
the ripening process comes on.
A Wonderful Dendrobium.—Mr. Blend, gardener to S. K. Mainwaring, Esq.,
Otley Park, Shrewsbury, has recently flowered a grand specimen of the
old and beautiful _Dendrobium Paxtoni_. The plant is in a 15-inch pot,
has 74 growths, and produced 123 flower spikes, containing in all 1,216
flowers. The longest growth on the plant measures as much as four feet
six inches. This plant is a marvel of cultivation, and we are much
pleased to be able to record such a splendid example of Orchid
management—B. S. W.
Odontoglossum mulus.—D. Tod, Esq., Eastwood Park, Thorliebank, by
Glasgow, has sent in flowers of a fine variety of _Odontoglossum mulus_,
which bloomed with him last April. The spike, Mr. Tod informs us, bore
sixteen flowers, and although this is no great number for _O. mulus_,
which generally comes with a large branched panicle, it must have been a
fine sight, as the flowers of Mr. Tod’s variety are not only very large,
but very brightly coloured.—B. S. W.
A Gigantic Orchid.—Messrs. F. Sander & Co., of St. Albans, have lately
received an enormous specimen of _Cattleya Skinneri_, certainly the
largest mass of an Orchid ever imported. The plant was found growing in
the crown of a tree, near Cartago, in Costa Rica, where it was
originally planted in a garden belonging to a native, by whom it has
since been cultivated, so that although this plant has been found in its
native habitat, it is, nevertheless, a cultivated specimen. This plant
has long been known to botanical travellers, Skinner, Roezl, and others
having seen it in flower. It is stated to have produced, at one time,
over 1,500 flowers. Its dimensions are six feet in height by seven feet
in diameter; its weight about twelve hundredweight. We understand Mr.
Sander is about erecting a house for its reception, where we suppose it
will figure as a _piece de resistance_ of the establishment.—H. W.
[Illustration: Pl. 143.
CŒLOGYNE BARBATA.]
CŒLOGYNE BARBATA.
[Plate 143.]
Native of India: Bhothan, Khasya, &c.
Epiphytal. _Pseudobulbs_ roundish-ovate, plump, two-leaved, with
brownish lanceolate bracts at their base. _Leaves_ narrowed below into
a petiole, elliptic-oblong, with a stout costa, plicate, leathery, one
and a half-inch wide, and from six inches to a foot long including the
petiole, of a lively green. _Peduncles_ erect, rigid, springing from
between the leaves, terete, terminating in a dense raceme of flowers,
below which are several pairs of abortive imbricated pale brown
bracts. _Flowers_ large, white, with a peculiar sooty or pitchy stain
covering the inner side of the lip, breaking out into fine pencillings
towards the margin; _sepals_ white, oblong-ovate, broadish at the
base, narrowed to the acute point; _petals_ white, lanceolate acute,
broadest at the base; _lip_ white, oblong, three-lobed, saccate at the
base, fringed with brown-based hairs on the anterior margins, and
bearded with hairs entirely dark brown on the three veins of the disk,
forming three shaggy crests, the side lobes tinged with pale flesh
colour or pink outside. _Column_ white, deflexed, bilobed at the end.
Cœlogyne barbata, _Griffith_, _Itinerary Notes 72_; _Id._ _Notulæ ad
Plantas Asiaticas_, iii., 280, t. 291, fig. 2; _Lindley_, _Folia
Orchidacea_, _art._ Cœlogyne, No. 21; _Reichenbach fil._, in _Walpers’
Annales Botanices Systematicæ_; vi., 229.
Of our present subject Dr. Lindley remarks (_Folia Orchidacea_, l.
c.)—“This is, perhaps, the finest of this fine genus. The coriaceous
leaves are more than fifteen inches long; the scapes are erect, very
stiff, as long as the leaves, and furnished at the apex with an
imbricated sheath of bud scales, out of which appears a flexuous raceme
four to six inches long, composed of very large blunt deciduous bracts.
The flowers are fully two inches and at half in diameter, pure white,
except very long hairy fringes which are brown at their base, where they
border the lip, and wholly brown where they cover the veins, and form
three shaggy crests.” The only figure previously published is a very
indifferent one of Griffith’s quoted above.
In the _Cœlogyne_ we now bring to the notice of our readers we have one
of the most useful species of a comparatively large genus, and one that
blooms during the winter months, when white flowers are sought after. It
is one, moreover, the flowers of which stand well when cut. We are
indebted to Mr. W. Bull, of Chelsea, for the introduction of this
species; which is a free bloomer when the bulbs are strong. It is a
plant which possesses many good qualities, being a free grower as well
as a free bloomer, and having the advantage of bearing fine evergreen
foliage; it will thrive well in the cool house with Odontoglots; and
besides all this, it is a cheap plant, so that everyone having a cool
house can procure and grow it without much expense or trouble. Our
drawing was taken from a specimen which flowered in the Victoria and
Paradise Nurseries.
_Cœlogyne barbata_ is, as we have just said, an evergreen plant, with
short pseudobulbs and stout foliage, which grows about a foot long, and
is of a lively green colour. The sepals and petals are white; the lip is
sepia-brown, distinctly bearded with long fringes of coloured hairs,
which give it a very distinct and quaint appearance, the fringe and
beard contrasting very strongly with the white sepals and petals. It
blooms during the autumn months, and continues flowering for a long
time, if the flowers are kept free from damp. The plant should,
therefore, be placed at the dry end of the house when in bloom, or be
removed to a drier house than that in which it has been grown. We find
it to grow well in a pot, if allowed perfect drainage, and planted in
rough fibrous peat, allowing it a moderate supply of water during the
growing season, but reducing the quantity when the plant is at rest.
There were three very interesting New Orchids exhibited by Sir T.
Lawrence, Bart, M.P., at the meeting of the Royal Horticultural Society
on April 22nd last, all being remarkably distinct and pretty:—
Angræcum fastuosum.—The growth of this species is somewhat similar to
that of _A. articulatum_, but the leaves are rounder and broader. The
spikes are short and drooping, the flowers pure white, sweet-scented,
with the lip larger than the petals; very distinct.
Odontoglossum cinnamomeum.—A new species, much resembling the true and
rare _O. odoratum_. The sepals and petals are, however, broader, and the
markings are much denser; the lip is yellow, with a large brownish
crimson blotch in the centre, and the margin faintly spotted with the
same colour, the whole surface being covered with fine downy hairs; very
strongly scented.
Dendrobium Harveyanum.—This is a great surprise, being in the way of
_Dendrobium Brymerianum_, but it has this peculiarity, that the petals
are fringed in the same way as the lip, thus practically giving to the
flower the appearance of three lips instead of one, although somewhat
modified. The flowers are smaller than those of _D. Brymerianum_, but
the plant resembles it in growth; and, indeed, it was imported with that
species, so that possibly it may be a sport from it, which has become
fixed. This plant has been named in honour of E. Harvey, Esq.,
Riversdale Road, Aigburth, Liverpool, in whose collection it first
bloomed.—H. W.
[Illustration: Pl. 144.
CATTLEYA LABIATA PERCIVALIANA.]
CATTLEYA LABIATA PERCIVALIANA.
[Plate 144.]
Native of Brazil.
Epiphytal. _Stems_ erect, club-shaped, becoming furrowed in age,
nearly a foot in height, monophyllous, evergreen. _Leaves_
oblong-obtuse, leathery, dark green. _Scape_ two-flowered, issuing
from an oblong sheath. _Flowers_ about five inches across, exceedingly
handsome, the lip being very richly coloured; _sepals_
linear-lanceolate, entire, the dorsal one recurved, of a soft pale
magenta-rose; _petals_ much larger and longer, broadly ovate-obtuse,
the margin slightly wavy, scarcely denticulate, about two and a
quarter inches broad, of the same pale rosy hue as the sepals, the
mid-rib strongly developed towards the base; _lip_ comparatively
small, but intensely rich in colour, bluntly keeled at the back
towards the base, plane for about half its length, with the margins
closely folded over the column, rosy at the edge, strongly flushed
with crimson and veined with golden yellow; the front lobe
roundish-oblong, one and a half inch wide, its edges meeting over the
throat, the margin being finely but neatly frilled, as also are the
sides of the broadly-rounded deeply-emarginate apex; the colour in the
expanded portion is a very rich velvety crimson in the central area,
passing near the front edge to a band one-fourth of an inch wide of
the pale rose of the petals, and continued narrower along the sides,
the disk and the sides of the tubulose basal portion flushed with
maroon-crimson, everywhere richly veined with deep yellow, giving the
appearance of bronzy gold, and having two elevated golden ridges
extending to the base. _Column_ thick, clavate, white, with a blunt
keel at the back, extending nearly to the apex, which has a small
inflexed acute appendage lying between the two blunt lobes of the
anther bed.
Cattleya labiata Percivaliana, _Reichenbach fil._, in _Gardeners’
Chronicle_, N.S., xvii., 796.
There has been much controversy of late respecting this beautiful
_Cattleya_, the true character of the flowers of which will be seen at
once from our Plate, our artist having produced a very faithful
representation of the richly-coloured blossoms. We have seen the flowers
of two successive seasons from the very plant from which our drawing was
taken, and have noted that they keep true to character as regards
colour, and that in the second year the flowers were larger than in the
first, which may be accounted for by the plant having become stronger
and better established, the blossoms partaking of the general
improvement. It must not, however, be expected that every purchaser will
obtain a plant of the some character as that represented in our Plate,
as we have seen but few that have proved to be equal to the one we
figure. There is an abundant supply of plants imported as _C.
Percivaliana_, but they vary greatly in merit—more so in this than in
any other _Cattleya_ that has come under our notice. Many of the species
of _Cattleya_ yield variety both as to the colour and size of their
blossoms, though they are generally all good enough to cultivate or to
use as decorative plants; but in this particular species or subspecies
there are many that prove to be worthless, and unfortunately no one can
tell whether individual plants will be good or had until the flowers
expand. The good ones are really valuable, for there is no other
_Cattleya_ in which the lip and throat are so richly coloured; even in
the small-flowered forms there is a portion of this rich colouration to
be found on the lip.
Mr. Sander, the importer, has been no doubt deceived, and has suffered
great loss through importing a large quantity of plants, of which many
have had to be destroyed owing to their not being worth cultivating,
since the bad forms cost as much to import as the good ones; while the
collectors, when they do not see them in bloom, do not suspect that such
inferior forms can exist amongst the good ones. We have seen other fine
varieties, but none better than the one we have illustrated, and which
we received from the superb collection of R. P. Percival, Esq., of
Birkdale, Southport, after whom it is named. We received the flowers two
years before we ventured to submit the drawing to our readers, and to
vouch for its accuracy. We trust there may prove to be enough of the
better forms imported to supply all who may desire to possess the plant
in its true character.
_Cattleya labiata Percivaliana_ is, like _labiata_ itself, an evergreen
plant, with clavate stems, ten inches in height, bearing dark green
foliage, much resembling that of _C. Mossiæ_. It is a plant of
compact-growing habit, having the sepals and petals suffused with a
delicate magenta-rose colour, while the lip is of an intense magenta,
marginated broadly with pale rosy purple, the throat being deep orange,
veined with brownish purple; the flowers have a most peculiar odour,
similar to that of _Lælia autumnalis_, by which they can be at once
identified. This _Cattleya_ blooms during the winter months, at the same
time as _C. Trianæ_, and lasts in bloom for two or three weeks.
Mr. Beddoes, the gardener at Birkdale, grows this plant in the same
house with _Cattleya Trianæ_, of which Mr. Percival has a remarkably
fine collection. The house in which they are grown, is a good-sized one,
and is so built and glazed that there is plenty of light admitted. It is
also a well ventilated structure, so that plenty of water may be used
about the house in their growing season, when the temperature is right
both inside and outside the house. This a most important item in the
successful cultivation of Orchids, as well as of other plants. Mr.
Percival has evidently studied this point, and good results have
followed, as will have been seen by those who have had the pleasure of
visiting his collection, while those who have not seen it should try to
do so, and judge for themselves. We find rough fibrous peat to suit this
plant, which must have sufficient drainage, and must be grown fully
exposed to light at all times. Mr. Sander informs us that the plants are
found growing on rocks in the full sun, so that they are likely to
require an abundance of light and a good season of rest.