159. 0RGHIDACE2R. [8. Microstylis. 



recurved. Petals as long, slender. Lip posterior (/. e. uppermost), 

 adnate to the base of column, concave or usually flat, sides often 

 produced upwards beyond the column as auricles. Column very 

 short, with short spreading arms, anther erect subterminal, pollinia 4. 



A. Leaves several. Sides of the lip not produced upwards into 



amides : — 



Lip subquadrately ovate, apex 3-lobed . . . . ] . congesta. 



Lip rounded reniform or fan-shaped, pectinate . . .2. versicolor. 



B. Leaves 2. Sides of lip produced upwards into auricles . 3. Cardoni. 



1. M. congesta, Reichb. 



A stout herb with leafy stem 2-6" covered with large dry sheaths 

 1-3" long below, base tuberous. Leaves 2-6, large elliptic, more rarely 

 ovate or lanceolate, 2-5-7" long, sessile or shortly petioled. Raceme 

 dense 2-4" or with peduncle up to 8" or even 12", pedicels • 12". 

 Flowers only • 2" long, perianth • 1" long, pale dirty reddish or yellow 

 and greenish (purple in one figure and according to a note dull-red), lip 

 subquadratelj' ovate concave with a fold under the column and a 

 3-lobed apex. Bracts reflexed linear-subacute •1--25" (usually -2") 

 long. Capsules -3- -4" long, dense, obtusely ridged between the ribs, 

 ridges rough or papillose, sometimes again ridged between. 



Narainhati, Sikkim Tarai (probably also Purneah) ! Parasnath. Clarke ! 

 Sarguja (no doubt on plateau), Cardon ! Fl. June-July. Fr. Oct.-Nov. 



Leaves usually 4-7" with the stronger nerves 6-7, base lanceolate or rounded 

 and suddenly contracted on to the short petiole. Bracts on the scape very close 

 and always strongly reflexed, linear-lanceolate acuminate. 



2. M. versicolor, Lindl. Syn. M. Rheedii, Wight. 



A slender or usually stout herb, always, however, ending in a slender 

 scape, 6-18" high, clothed with sheaths below the leaves. Leaves 

 3-4 aggregated at several inches above the base, elliptic or loAvest 

 ovate, 1-4" long, very shortly acuminate, base rounded shortly 

 petiolate. Scape and peduncle together from 3-4" in wealv to 9" long 

 in strong plants, M'ith numerous reflexed lanceolate bracts • 1" long. 

 Flowers very small, sweet-scented, with perianth about • 1" long only 

 and -2" broad, the drooping linear petals exceeding the sub-ovate 

 sepals, lip rounded reniform or fan-shaped, pectinate. Capsule 

 •3— 35" long. 



Grows among dead leaves. Ranchi, Cardon ! Fl. July. 



The Ranchi plant referred to M. Rheedii in the Calcutta Herbarium (and Bengal 

 Plants) is an unusually small specimen only 3-5" high with a raceme only 1-1-5" 

 long. The specimen was insufficient for critical examination. The leaf-nerves 

 in the normal plant are about 7 (referring only to the stronger ones), and the flowers 

 are described as red by Rheede and as greenish-yellow or piu-plish in the F.B.I. 



3. M. Cardoni, Prain. 



A small ground orchid about 6-8" high with a single pair of sub- 

 amplexicaul orbicular to elliptic-oblong obtuse leaves 1*7-2 -5" long 

 and a not very dense raceme of small greenish flowers -2 — 25". Sepals 

 ell. -oblong much broader than the 2 linear petals. Lip with the 

 central lobe erect and the two basal lobes divaricate from it and almost 

 in the same plane, one on either side of the column, central lobe 

 deepl}^ emarginate, its apices rounded. 



1165 



