1924 



LUPINUS 



LYCASTE 



brownish keel: pod hairy. June, July. Calif. B.R. 

 1705. This species and its varieties are very florif- 

 erous, giving a fine effect in masses and in the border. 

 Var. albus Hort., white tinged with lilac. Var. albo- 

 coccineus, Hort. A very compact variety, the lower 

 half of the spike rosy red, the upper white; forms com- 

 pact tufts and is called a superior variety. 



L. angustifdlius, Linn., with blue fls., is much grown in Eu. as a 

 fodder plant and for plowing under: annual. Native to the Medit. 

 region. L. pubescens, Benth. Perennial or subshrubby, the pu- 

 bescence short, spreading, hardly silky in the new parts: Ifts. 7-9, 

 oblong-lanceolate, acute, shorter than the petiole, pubescent on both 

 sides: fls. loosely arranged almost in whorls: pedicels shorter than 

 the calyx: pod hirsute, 4-6-seeded. The above is from the original 

 description. Bentham neglects to state the color of the fls., but an 

 allied species has blue fls. Mottet must be in error in calling this an 

 annual. Mex., Cent. Amer., Colombia. L. villdsus, Willd., is men- 

 tioned occasionally in garden literature. 



The following are garden hybrids of unknown origin. They 

 mostly have variegated fls. and are common in cult. : L. atroviol&ceus. 

 Perennial, 2 ft. high: fls. dark violet, striped with white and yellow. 

 L. ccelestinus. Annual, 2 ft. high: fls. light blue. L. Dunnettii. 

 Fls. lilac-purple, gold and white. According to Voss, this is the 

 same as the kinds known to the trade as L. superbus, L. insignis 

 (Vilmorin, not Dippe), L. tricolor elegans and L. superbus Dun- 

 nettii. There is also a double form. L. hybridus. Probably mixed 

 kinds. L. tricolor. See L. Dunnettii. 



A. PHELPS WYMAN. 



JOHN W. HARSHBERGEK.f 



LUZULA (Latin lux, light, in diminutive derivation, 

 from some fanciful attribute or interest). Juncacex. 

 WOOD RUSH. About forty species of grass-like or rush- 

 like, often cespitose, perennial herbs of wide distribu- 

 tion in temperate and frigid regions, some of them 

 adapted to borders and for colonizing. Several species 

 are native in the United States and Canada, but none 

 of them seems to be listed in the' trade; two European 

 species are offered abroad. By some, the name Jun- 

 coides is used in place of Luzula. 



These are plants of mostly inconspicuous green or 

 scarious fls. (sometimes white) in umbel-like, panicu- 

 late, corymbose or congested infl., the fls. always 

 bracteolate; perianth parts distinct, glumaceous; 

 stamens usually 6; ovary 1 -celled: fr. a dry 3-seeded 

 caps.: Ivs. soft, usually hairy or webby: dry ground. 

 Juncus, to which the genus is closely related, differs in 

 its mostly 3-celled and many-seeded caps. 



sylvatica, Gaud. (L. mdxima, DC. L. sylvestris, Hort. 

 Juncoldes sylvdticum, Kuntze). Rhizome woody: st. 

 12-18 in. or more high: Ivs. linear-lanceolate, hairy- 

 edged, shining, striate: panicle double-compound, 

 much exceeding the If .-like bracts; perianth-segms. 

 bristle-pointed; filaments very short. Eu. There is a 

 form with variegated (striped?) foliage. 



nivea, DC. (Juncoldes niveum, Kuntze). Fls. pure 

 white, large, in thick panicles that are shorter than the 

 If .-bracts; filaments about equaling the anthers: plant 

 12-18 in.: Ivs. linear, hairy on margin. Eu., Alps. 

 Useful in dry bouquets. L. H. B. 



LYCASTE (fanciful name). Orchidaceas. Epiphytic 

 and terrestrial orchids; very popular as greenhouse 

 subjects. 



Pseudobulbs ovate or oblong-ovate, bearing 1 to 

 several plicate Ivs. at the summit, and sheathing Ivs. 

 from the base: sepals subsimilar, spreading, the lateral 

 pair united with the base of the column and forming a 

 spur-like chin or mentum; petals smaller, projecting 

 forward, with the tips often recurved; labellum 3-lobed, 

 the lateral lobes erect, middle lobe ascending or re- 

 curved, with a fleshy, tongue-like callus on the disk; 

 pollinia 4. About 30 species, all natives of S. Amer., 

 Mex., and the W. Indies. The fls. are freely produced 

 and remain in good condition on the plant for several 

 weeks. They are normally borne singly on erect or 

 sub-erect bracted scapes, but sometimes twin-fld. stalks 

 occur. In Lycaste the scape arises from the very young 

 leafy axis, which does not develop until several months 

 later. The scape, therefore, appears from the base of the 

 bulb. Among the species, L. Skinneri is a favorite 



orchid with growers. The species of Lycaste are very 

 distinct from each other and do not fall readily into 

 natural groups. The arrangement in the key is purely 

 artificial, and does not indicate close relationship among 

 the species grouped together. 



The genus Lycaste is closely allied to Maxillaria and 

 has a similar geographical range, being found from 

 Mexico and the West Indies to Peru and southeastern 

 Brazil. Notwithstanding this wide distribution, how- 

 ever, they readily subject themselves to one general 

 mode of treatment, and may be grown in a bright cool 

 portion of the cattleya or warm end of the odontoglos- 

 sum department, where they should receive plenty of 

 indirect solar light, moisture and sufficient ventilation 

 to ensure an active atmosphere. During winter, the 

 night temperature should range from 50 to 55 Fahr. 

 and that of the day from 60 to 65, or a few degrees 

 higher, with sun heat and ventilation. In summer, the 

 air should be as cool as possible, and contain plenty of 

 moisture. When lycastes are growing they need a good 

 supply of water at the roots, and should never be allowed 

 to remain dry for a long time, even when at rest. Light 

 syringing overhead is beneficial at all times in bright 

 weather when air can be admitted. The deciduous spe- 

 cies, however, must be carefully watered when at rest, 

 for it must be remembered that in casting their foliage 

 they lose most of their active radiating surface, thus 

 reducing evaporation to a minimum. For special treat- 

 ment, they may be divided into three groups, L. aromat- 

 ica, L. costata and L. tetragona forming good types. 

 The L. aromatica section embraces, besides the type, L. 

 Candida, L. cruenta, L. Deppei, L. lasioglossa, L. macro- 

 button and kindred sorts, all more or less deciduous. 

 These grow best in pots in a mixture of equal parts 

 chopped peat fiber and sphagnum moss, with a small 

 quantity of leaf-mold added. About one-third of the pot 

 space should be devoted to drainage of broken charcoal 

 or potsherds, and the compost must be carefully and 

 rather firmly pressed in about the roots, leaving the 

 base of the pseudobulbs on a level with or a little below 

 the rim of the pot. The best time for transplanting is 

 just after the plants start into new growth, at which 

 time give a more abundant supply of water. The L. 

 costata group includes, besides the type, such species as 

 L. lanipes, L. locusta and L. Skinneri, which, excepting 

 the last, are but semi-deciduous, large-growing species. 

 They succeed best under pot culture, and should be 

 grown in a compost of about equal parts chopped sod, 

 from which some of the fine soil has been removed, and 

 decomposed leaves, adding a little chopped live sphag- 

 num to keep the soil porous and to retain moisture. 

 The compost should become nearly dry occasionally to 

 prevent it from becoming sour. The L. tetragona section 

 is small ; all are sempervirent and grow best under basket 

 culture in porous material consisting of chopped peat 

 fiber and live sphagnum, well mixed and interspersed 

 with nodules of charcoal. The compost should be pressed 

 in moderately firm about the roots to keep the plant 

 steady, and newly imported pieces should be held in 



Elace by copper or brass wire crossed between the pseudo- 

 ulbs. Lycaste stock is usually supplied by new impor- 

 tations, but plants may be increased by cutting through 

 the rhizome between the pseudobulbs, two at least being 

 left to each piece. (Robert M. Grey.) 



alba, 12. 



albo-sanguinea, 12. 

 armeniaca, 12. 

 aromatica, 13. 

 brevispalha, 4. 

 Candida, 4, 12. 

 costata, 2. 

 cruenta, 10. 

 delicatissima, 12. 

 Denholmiana, 12. 



INDEX. 



Deppei, 14. 



gigantea, 7. 

 grandiflora, 12. 

 hellemense, 12. 

 lanipes, 3. 

 lasioglossa, 1. 

 Lawrenceana, 4. 

 locusta, 8. 

 macrobulbon, 11. 

 magnifica, 6. 



Measuresiana, 5. 

 plana, 5. 



punctatissima, 14. 

 purpurata, 12. 

 rosea, 12. 

 rubra, 4. 

 Schilleriana, 6. 

 Skinneri, 12. 

 superba, 12. 

 tetragona, 9. 



L. m's<<lta=Paphinia cristata. L. #arnsorn'a?=Bifrenaria.- 

 L. inodora, Lindl.=Bifrenaria. L. jugosa, Benth.=Colax. 



