Ur Graham's Description of' Ncic or Rare PlanU-. 181 



binet. Rather on this account, than because 1 think it the most appli- 

 cable, I adopt it. The species, though handsome enough in the stove, 

 is much less ornamental than several others which have been published 

 lately. 



Bonatea speciosa. 



B. speciosa, Willd. Sp. PI. iv. 43 — Persoon, Synop. PI. ii. 506. — Lodd. Bot. 



Cab. t. 284 Sprengel, Syst. Veget. iii. 694. 



Orchis speciosa, T/mnb. Prodr. p. 4 — Linn. Suppl. 401 — Swarlz, Act. 



Holm. 1800, p. 206. 



Description ■•' /?oo/s fascicled." Whole plant {l^ foot high) erect. Stem 



jointed, joints swelling a Uttle upwards, round. Leaves (44 inches long, 

 2 broad), sheathing, ovate, spreading on all sides, undulate, reflected at 

 the apex, coriaceous, smooth and shining, deep Q;reen above, lighter and 

 irregularly stained with rusty spots below, collected towards the upper 

 part of the stem, the lower part of which is only cased in black decayed 

 sheaths ; middle rib strong and prominent behind, 4-8 much smaller 

 lateral nerves. Spike (7 inches long, 5 broad) termmal, erect, many- 

 flowered. BracletB large, pale green, ovate, attenuated at the base, acu- 

 minate, smaller upwards. Flowers ascending obliquely on aU sides, nearly 

 sessile,- perfume somewhat resembling that of the orange flower, but 

 more faint. Outer perianth of three, membranous, nerved, pointed, green 

 segments ; of which the ujjper is cucuUate, the two lower ovate, oblique, 

 spreading, undulate, reflected at the apex, and whitish on their inner 

 side. Inner perianth 3-parted ; the two upper segments narrow, mem- 

 branous, linear, pointed, green, as long as the cucullate portion of the 

 outer perianth, along the edges of which they are laid, and each has 

 arising from its upper edge near the base, a filiform, erect, straight, 

 white appendage, about half as long as itself. Lower segment (lahellum) 

 fleshy, unequally divided into five ; the lateral portions separated to the 

 base, are spreading, falcate, acute, pure white, the reflected apex tipped 

 with green, the inner part thick and fleshy, the outei", especially to- 

 wards the apex, reduced to a thin edge ; below these, and rather less 

 deeply separated, are two white, shorter segments, of similar structure 

 to them, but, from their thin edge being convolute, they appear like two 

 parallel, nearly straight c_vlinders, distilling honey from their extremi- 

 ties, and projecting downwards upon the surface of the centi'al lobe, 

 which is the longest of anj% and is cleft into three long, green, linear, 

 llexuose segments, and from its base, in the centre of the flower, rises a 

 short, white, blunt, slightly curved, cylindrical tooth, round which and 

 round the mouth of the spur, a fold of the jierianth passes, connecting 

 to each other the bases of the convolute segments. The two lower seg- 

 ments of the outer perianth are connate at the base with the iinier. Be- 

 tween the bases of the first and second portion of the lahellum, there is 

 on each side a short, broad, subcrenate, fleshy' scale. 5[pwr (1| inch long) 

 blunt, flattened, nearly straight, shorter than the germen, green. Sta- 

 men green, cucullate, placed under the hood of the outer perianth. Pol- 

 len masses two, marginal, spathulato-elliptical, flattened, bi-parted, yel- 

 low, granular, on long elastic pedicels, which enlarge at their upper ex- 

 tremities, and arise from a little adhesive scale, which, as in other Or- 

 i^kidea, attaching itself firmly to any body that is brought into contact 

 with it, causes the pollen-mass to be readily drawn from the flower ; seg- 

 ments of the pollen-mass somewhat concave on their inner side, granules 

 large, loose, and attached only'to the outside of the segments. Anther-cases, 

 greatly attenuated at their bases, project forwards like two teeth in the 

 middle of the flower, partly covered by the reflected edge of a white, 

 ciliated, cucuUus, which rises in front of the anther-case, and is much 

 larger than it. This investing fold of its edge passes backwards, and 

 terminates on each side in the fleshy scale, between the base of the first 

 and second segments of the lahellum. Germen (about 2 inches long) 

 longer than the spur, green, tvisted, tmilocular. Ovttlce minute, very 



