LEPANTHES 



67 



at the apex a single leaf ; sheaths tubular, enlarging towards 

 the margined oblique mouth, and marked with several vertical 

 ridges. Leaf sessile or subsessile, rigid, elliptical or roundish 

 elliptical, margined, minutely 3- toothed at the apex. Racemes 

 axillary, solitary or clustered ; flowers few or several, somewhat 

 close together, in two ranks, generally minute. Sepals spreading 

 or erect, more or less ovate, subequal, lateral more or less 

 connate. Petals minute, the short claw adnate to the base of 

 the column, the limb generally much wider than long. Lip 

 adnate at the base or above the base of the column, 2-lobed, the 

 lobes erect, parallel to the column, cuneate, with the upper 

 edges thickened, forming flattened surfaces embracing the 

 column ; or sometimes simple, with or without two posterior 

 lobes. Column short ; anther terminal, opercular, generally 

 obovate ; pollinia 2, waxy, pear-shaped, pedicellate. Capsule 

 obovoid. 



Species about 50, on the mountains of tropical America and 

 the West Indies. 



1. Diplocheilus. Lip dividing near the base into two erect, diverging 

 lobes of which the upper edges thicken into more or less expanded lanceo- 

 late surfaces, embracing the column. 



A. Breadth of petals shorter than length of sepals. 



I. Breadth of petals longer than upper surfaces 

 of lip. 



a. Posterior lobe of petal subequal to 

 anterior. 



1. Sepals acuminate, lateral ^ or less 

 connate. 



Sepals ciliolate, lateral connate 



only at base 1. L. pulchella. 



Sepals glabrous, lateral ^-connate 7. L. divaricata. 



2. Sepals acuminate, glabrous, lateral 



J-connate ; petals rhomboidal 9. L. obtusipetala. 



3. Sepals acute or obtuse, J-|-connate. 



Sepals ciliolate, lateral |-connate 2. L. sanguined. 

 Sepals glabrous, lateral ^-connate. 

 Petals deltoid or obversely 

 deltoid. 

 Plants 1J-2J inches high, 

 petals obversely deltoid. 



Sepals acute, crimson ... 3. L. Wullschlaegelii. 

 Sepals obtuse, yellow ... 4. J/. Woodiana. 

 Plants 4-7 inches high ; 



sepals acute, petals deltoid 10. L. obtusa. 

 Petals lanceolate 5. L. Loddigesiana. 



4. Sepals connate nearly to apex 6. L. rotundata. 



b. Posterior lobe of petal much larger 



than anterior 8. L. ovalis. 



II. Breadth of petals shorter than upper 



surfaces of lip 11. L. arcuata. 



B. Breadth of petals about as long as length of 



sepals 12. L. cochlearifolia. 



F 2 



