Harch 27, 1909 



HORTICULTURE 



425 



Catasetum maculatum 



Male Flowers 



In the great natural order of Orchidese the genus 

 Catasetum, together with its allies Cynoches and Mor- 

 modes, stands out very prominently from the rest of 

 that great and varied family. It is not the beauty of 

 their flowers, for these are as a rule more homely than 

 beautiful, but the wonderful construction of these flow- 

 ers and the habit of producing from the same bulb both 

 male and female flowers which are very distinct from 

 one another both in form and color, that makes these 

 plants so interesting to the lover of flowers and of 

 orchids especially. 



Our illustrations show Catasetum maculatum with a 

 raceme of eight male flowers and the same plant and 

 pseudo-bulb with a raceme of five female flowers pro- 

 duced about two months later. The male flowers are of 

 a yellowish green color shaded and suffused with brown 

 (usually the flowers of the species are densely spotted 

 with brown) whereas the female flowers are a pea-green 

 with darker shadings of the same color. The male 

 flowers are freely produced on the different species, but 

 it is very seldom one has an opportunity to see female 

 flowers or to see and compare both sexes together. The 

 male flowers, C. maculatum, for instance, have been 

 known since 1822 when they were collected by Hum- 

 boldt and Bonplandi at Turbaco, Columbia (see Orchid 

 Eeview, Vol. XVII, p. 38), but female flowers of the 

 genus were not known until 1893 when they appeared 

 at Kew and shortly afterwards at the Royal Botanic Gar- 

 dens, Glasnevin. They might have appeared elsewhere 

 priot to that time, but were not recognized as belonging 

 to that genus: in fact very little was known in those days 

 of the separation of the two sexes in these genera and 

 to this day the female flowers of some species are still 

 unknown and in a few instances female flowers have 

 appeared where the corresponding male flowers were un- 

 known. It is a very perplexing genus for botanists to 

 work on. 



The pictures show the difference between the sexes 

 very plainly except for the two horns which are connected 

 with a case covering the pollen masses. These two an- 

 tennae or horns descend (or ascend, rather, as the flow- 

 ers appear to grow upside down) into the pouch and 

 they are so sensitive at the ends, that upon the slightest 



Female riowers 



touch the pollen mass, consisting of two egg-sliaped yel- 

 low masses attached to a short column, will be released, 

 jump out with considerable force and stick to whatever 

 insect or other object it may happen to strike. 



These sensitive horns which make the male flowers so 

 interesting are absent in the female flowers; the pouch 

 in these latter is much more massive and more globose 

 than in the former and will adhere to the column until 

 the seed is ripe. 



The culture of Catasetums is very simple. I use 

 osmunda fibre with a little sphagnum moss for a com- 

 post, small pots and plenty of drainage. While growing 

 they will require stove temperature, suspended where 

 they can get the maximum of light. Water very spar- 

 ingly until the new pseudo-bulbs commence to swell out, 

 else they are very apt to rot off. After the pseudo-bulbs 

 commence to swell give plenty of water (occasionally 

 liquid manure) until they are fully matured; then water 

 is at first gradually, and later entirely withheld until the 

 plants start to grow again. They are rested in a tem- 

 perature of 50 degrees to 55 degrees in full sun. 



Naugatuck, Conn. 



The Great International Horticul- 

 tural Exhibition in Berlin 



This big affair instituted by the Verein Zur Befor- 

 derung des Gartenbanes and which takes place from 

 April 2-13 this year, in the Berlin Zoological Garden, 

 enjoys the sympathy of the various authorities, cor- 

 porate bodies, and of a wide section of the pubHc. The 

 Protector of the Verein is the Kaiser Wilhelm II, who 

 will present a magnificent Prize of Honor from the 

 Royal Porcellain factory. The Crown Prince and the 

 Crown Princess intend to award other Prizes of Honor. 

 A number of prizes will be given by many of the cities 

 of Germany. 



