124 ORCHIS MACULATA. 



verification, who wrote in reply, " All the specimens you sent 

 two days ago were my Orchis encetoriim." The plants forwarded 

 were gathered at High Beach and over St. Thomas's Quarters. 

 Perhaps it may be useful to give the original description of 

 O. evicetovum, Linton, from The Flora of Bournemouth (igoo), 



pp. 208-9 • — 



" More slender than the type ; stem usually somewhat purplish above ; 

 leaves narrower, more or less recurved, eveu the lower cauline more or less 

 acuminate, carinate and folded ; spike i to 2 inches, broadly pyramidal, at 

 length oblong ; bracts purplish ; flowers pale, scentless, with rose-purple 

 markings, ground commonly white or tinged with pink, but sometimes of 

 deeper colour ; outer line of markings nearly or quite complete ; nectary 

 slender, slightly enlarged or not at all upwards, throat narrow ; lower lip sub- 

 orbicular, rounded in outline, rather spreading ; mid-lobe much smaller than 

 the broad obliquely truncate or crenate lateral lobes, not exceeding them in 

 length and usually shorter or somewhat recurved. 



" Compared with this sub-species, or rather species, if a sufficient 

 number of these distinctions are found on further examination to hold good, 

 the type is rather a stouter and commonly bigger plant, with broader, 

 straight er leaves, less carinate and folded, frequently flat ; spike i^ to 2 J inches, 

 ovate-oblong in flowering, oblong at length bracts more usually (? always), 

 green ; flowers with dark rose-purple markings (the outer line//, m. disjointed) 

 on a pale rose-purple ground ; faintly aromatic (? always) ; nectary stouter, 

 enlarged upwards, throat gaping obviously, lip deeply 3-cleft, vertically 

 pendent ; lobes sub-equal, lateral obliquely oblong crenulate ; mid-lobe 

 deltoid-oblong or deltoid-acuminate, distinctly exceeding and not much if at 

 all narrower than the lateral, usually straight. 



"These two plants have a wide distribution in Britain: sub-species 

 ericetonim has been noted from Caithness and Sutherland to the South Coast 

 and Guernsey, and also from Co. Wicklow. A supposed hybrid between the 

 two occurred in Glen Lockay, Perthshire, but they seldom are found in the 

 same locality." 



" Moist places and bogs on heaths " are the habitats given. 

 There can be no doubt that of the characters ascribed to 

 0. ericetonim, some are of questionable value. Thus, some of the 

 Epping Forest plants possess a pleasant odour ; the bracts and 

 stems are more frequently green than purplish, and though some 

 plants show the lip with the outer line of purple markings com- 

 plete, these are in the minority. The characters which to me 

 seem most helpful in determining O. ericetovum, are the narrow 

 leaves, small spike of pale flowers, mid-lobe of lip smaller than 

 the lateral, general slender habit and its heathland habitat. 

 Typical O. maculata, whilst it may be present in the Forest, 

 I have not encountered, and, on the open heathy parts, 

 0. ericetovum seems to be the only form present. 



