ORCHIDACEJE 15 



SPIRANTHES LONGILABRIS 



Spiranthes longilabris Lindley, Orch. PL 467 (1840); Ames, 



Orchidace^:, fasc. 1, 132 (1905). 

 Spiranthes brevifolia Chapman, Fl. S. U. S. ed. 1, 462 (1860). 

 Gyrostachys longilabris Kuntze, Rev. Gen. PL, part 2, 664 



(1891). 

 Gyrostachys brevifolia Kuntze, Rev. Gen. PL, part 2, 664 (1891). 



" S. foliis radicalibus . . . , spica laxa secunda multiflora pilosa, 

 bracteis lanceolatis acuminatis glabris floribus brevioribus, labello 

 ovato-lanceolato acuminato apice retrorsum lacero carnoso : callis 

 conicis." — Lindley, loc. cit. 



Plants 3.5-5 dm. tall, slender, flexuose. Roots fleshy, clustered, 

 numerous. Leaves f ugaceous, linear, acute, ± 1 dm. long, =b 5 mm. 

 wide, passing above into persistent foliose bracts which closely 

 sheath the stem. Scape sparsely pubescent above the uppermost 

 bract. Inflorescence =b 1 dm. long, a secund, spicate raceme of 

 white tubular flowers. Floral bracts lanceolate, acute, smooth 

 or very sparsely pubescent, ± 1 cm. long. Flowers ± 8 mm. long. 

 Lateral sepals linear-oblong, 8 mm. long. Upper sepal similar to 

 the laterals, slightly larger. Petals linear-oblong, broadest above 

 the middle, ± 8 mm. long. Labellum yellowish, narrowly oblong 

 or ovate-oblong, obtuse, somewhat dentate or crenate toward the 

 apex. Callosities smooth, conical. Column generically typical. 



8. longilabris Lindl. was originally described from Louisiana 

 plants collected by Drummond. In Lindley's herbarium at Kew 

 the type consists of a single specimen. In the Hookerian herba- 

 rium Drummond's plant numbered 495, collected at " New Or- 

 leans " in 1833, appears to be of the same collection as the plant 

 in Lindley's herbarium. Drummond's Texan specimens determined 

 by Lindley as S. longilabris belong to another species. Since 



