ORCHIDACE.E 



37-53 cm. long, 3.8-5.3 cm. wide, linear-oblong to oblong, grad- 

 ually narrowed to both ends with an abruptly acuminate apex, 

 erect, rigid, strongly plicate, coriaceous, many-nerved with about 

 seven nerves prominent beneath. Petiole about (8) 12-25 cm. 

 long, stout, subcylindric, deeply channeled, merging gradually 

 with the leaf blade. Inflorescence heteranthous. Peduncle short, 

 including the raceme up to 17.5 cm. long; the portion below 

 the raceme erect or suberect from a decumbent base and more or 

 less entirely clothed with triangular to lance-tubular imbricating 

 sheaths. Rachis loosely five- to seven-flowered, suberect or arcu- 

 ate, gently zigzag, usually subtended by an appressed sterile bract. 

 Bracts of the inflorescence persistent, about 2 cm. long, 1.2 cm. 

 wide, apparently convolute and sheathing the pedicellate ovary, 

 spreading, somewhat reflexed in late development, ovate to ob- 

 ovate-oblong, acute or acuminate, scarious, striate-nervose, the 

 lowermost bracts longer and narrower. Flowers simultaneous, 

 sub-fleshy; perianth segments somewhat spreading. Lateral 

 sepals about 1.6-1.8 cm. long, 8-9 mm. wide, elliptic-oblong, 

 strongly cymbiform, cucullate and complicate-mucronate at the 

 apex, about flve-nerved. Dorsal sepal similar, a little shorter, 

 rounded at the apex, strongly concave. Petals about 1.5 cm. long, 

 6 mm. wide in the middle, narrowly elliptic, acute, about three- 

 nerved. Lip in natural position about 1.4 cm. long, tubular-con- 

 volute about the column for about half its length, then somewhat 

 reflexed with the lamina gradually spreading into the strongly 

 undulate deflexed anterior portion; Hp when spread out oval, 

 about 1.75 cm. long, 1.1 cm. broad, saccate at the base, indis- 

 tinctly three-lobed above; lateral lobes longitudinally semi-or- 

 bicular, at the apex porrect, rounded, overlapping the middle 

 lobe ; middle lobe when expanded suborbicular with a very large 

 fold in the middle of each margin, the apex broadly truncate and 



[24] 



