NOTES OX THE NEPENTHACEJE, OH PITCHER-PLANTS. 303. 



XXIX. 



NOTES ON THE NEPENTHACE.E, OR 

 PITCHER-PLANTS. 



BY GEORGE RUSSELL. 



[Read 31st January, 1888.] 



The order Nepenthacece- consists of the single genus 

 Nepenthes, of which there are about 30 known species. 

 This genus is one of great interest to botanists on 

 account of the extraordinary formation of the leaves,, 

 in which a foliaceous extension of the midrib takes 

 the form of a pitcher, hence the commonly applied 

 name of " pitcher-plant." 



The species first introduced was brought from 

 Ceylon in the year 1789, and was named Nepenthes 

 distillatoria. Its leaves and pitchers are green. In 

 the same year Nepenthes ampxdlaria was introduced 

 from Borneo. The pitchers of this species are green, 

 but their bottle-like shape renders them very distinct 

 from those of N distillatoria. N. Khasiana wa& 

 introduced from China during the year 1787. 



The first species with spotted or marbled pitchers- 

 came from Singapore in 1815, and was named N. 

 Rafflesiana. A marked improvement on this species- 

 was introduced from Sarawak in 1815. It is named 

 N. Hookeriana, and is apparently a variety of N 

 Rafflesiana and one which is not excelled at the 

 present time. Its pitchers are beautifully marbled 

 and very freely produced. 



A few fine hybrids have been raised by Messrs. 

 Veitch of Chelsea, and these have been named N. 

 Courtii, N. Domineana, N. Sedenii, &c. Messrs. Veitch 

 have also introduced some very handsome species, 

 N. Northiana being exceptionally beautiful. Mr. B. 



