somewhat falcate, and are swollen at the base where they 

 receive the base of the lip, all of them erect, never spread- 

 ing *. Lip almost white, within spotted with purple, ob- 

 long, erect, the sides incurved, and a little waved, three- 

 lobed, the middle or terminal lobe the largest, broad and 

 retuse. Column short, white, plane in front, and then 

 spotted with purple below the stigma. Anther white, hemi- 

 spherical, attached to the back of the top of the column. 

 Pollen-Masses yellow. 



Dendrobium speciosum is a New Holland plant, that has 

 been long cultivated in our stoves ; but which, as far as I 

 am aware, has rarely produced blossoms. In the present 

 season, (Jan. 1831,) a noble flowering specimen was com- 

 municated to me, from the Liverpool Botanic Garden, 

 by the Messrs. Shepherds. The plant was named by Sir 

 James E. Smith, in his Exotic Botany, where a figure 

 likewise is given, but so unlike our present one, that the 

 two plants scarcely appear to be the same. Yet I believe 

 they are identical, and that the difference arises from the 

 artist of Sir James E. Smith's figure (which was done in 

 New Holland,) not being skilled in Botanical drawing. 

 The flowers are greatly larger than in our plant, the gib- 

 bous or spur-like base, essential to the Genus Dendrobium, 

 is omitted, and the petals are widely patent. The plant 

 from which our figure is taken was sent by Mr. Fraser 

 to the Liverpool Garden. A drawing has likewise been 

 obligingly communicated to me, by W. T. Aiton, Esq., 

 from the Royal Gardens at Kew. 



* In a fine specimen forwarded to me from the Edinburgh Botanic Garden, 

 since the plate was engraved, one of the blossoms was considerably more 

 expanded than is here represented. 



Fig. 1. Flower, slightly magnified. 2. Column or Lip, the latter forced 

 back to show more of the former. 3. Front view of the Column. 4. Inte- 

 rior view of the Lip. 5. Pollen-Masses.— All more or less magnified. 



