1112 



OAKESIA 



sesBilifdlia, Wats. Stem once forked: Ivs. oblong- 

 lanceolate, acute at each end ; margins minutely sca- 

 brous : capsule borne on a distinct stipe. Canada to Pla. 

 and Ark. B.M. 1402. L.B.C. 13:1262. G.W.F. 1«. D. 51. 

 r W Barclay and W M 



OAT lifiin silt,,, I 



OBELISCAEIA 



v#^.i 



1^^. 



%.^ 



1508 The wide spreadine Live Oak of the South 

 (bee Oak page lUl I 



6CHNA (old Greek name for a wild pear, which some 

 of these plants were thought to resemble in foliage). 

 Ochndcem. O. multiflora is a cool greenhouse shrub 

 cult, by a few fanciers for its remarkable appearance 

 when in fruit. The fls. are yellow, appear in spring, 

 and are borne to the number of 10-15 in racemes ter- 

 minating short lateral branches. The blossoms are 

 short-lived, but the calyx is persistent. Its 5 sepals are 

 greenish in flower, but become a bright red in fruit. The 

 receptacle increases until it becomes an inch or so thick, 

 globular and bright red. Upon it are borne black seed- 

 like bodies, which are the carpels. The red and black 

 make a fine contrast. This rare plant is best prop, by 

 cuttings struck in autumn. It is cult, in America, but 

 not advertised. 



Ochna is a genus of about 25 species of trees and 

 shrubs from tropical Asia and Africa: Ivs. deciduous, 

 alternate, minutely serrate, leathery, shining : fls. yel- 

 low, rarely greenish, jointed to the pedicels; sepals 5, 

 colored, imbricate, persistent ; petals 5-10 ; stamens 

 indefinite; anthers opening longitudinally or by pore- 

 like slits : ovary deeply 3-10-lobed ; lobes 1-celled, 

 1-ovuled; styles connate; drupes 3-10, sessile. 



multilldra, DC. Glabrous shrub, 4-5 ft. high: Ivs. 

 oblong-elliptical to oblanceolate-oblong: petals sessile: 

 anthers as long as the filaments, opening longitudinally: 

 sepals in fruit about 4 lines long. Upper Guinea. 



G. W. Oliver and W. M. 



Ochna mtiltiflora is a remarkably handsome shrub 

 for conservatory decoration. It is usually regarded as 

 a stove shrub, but has done well with us in a green- 

 house temperature of 55° (min.). It has a unique effect, 

 and to be properly appreciated specimens should stand 

 out. The drupelets are black, making a striking contrast 

 with the enlarged red receptacle, at a glance reminding 

 one of a spindle tree. In a good bottom heat, seeds ger- 

 minate in a month, and make neat little plants in a 

 year. We have not been so fortunate with cuttings. 

 Unfortunately tor us, cat - birds appropriated all the 

 berries as soon as they became ripe. They entered 

 through the open spaces in the annex to our conserva- 

 t<"'y- T. D. Hatfield. 



6CIMUM. .See Basil. 



OCOTILLO. Fouquieria spleiiclens. 



ODONTADfiNIA (Greek, toothed glandx). Apoey- 

 ndeete. Here belongs the fine tropical yellow-fld. 

 climber sold as Dipladenia Harrisii, which rivals in 

 beauty the well known greenhouse AUamandas. The 

 fls. are fragrant, about 3 in. across, funnel-shaped, with 

 5 rounded, spreading lobes, and are more or less 

 streaked with red in the throat, at the base of the lobes, 

 and on the back of the tube. The treatment which George 



ODONTOGLOSSUM 



McWilliam has given Dipladeniaswith such good results 

 (see Dipladenia, Vol. I) should be attempted for Odon- 

 tadenia, but O. speeiosa perhaps grows at lower alti- 

 tudes, and may require the treatment usually given to 

 hothouse vines All Odontadenias have yellow fls., 

 while Dipladenias are yellow only in the throat. 



Odoutadeuia is a genus of about 8 species of tall, 

 shrubby tropical American climbers : Ivs. opposite : 

 cymes loose usually ample, rarely few-fld. and scarcely 

 branched cahx 5-parted, the lobes remarkably blunt or 

 roundtd corolla lobes twisted in the pointed bud, over- 

 1 i| I iii^ tij the right and twisted to the left; stamens 

 li\ 1 It ilii top of the narrow part of the tube. The 

 - nil I distinguished from Dipladenia by the shape of 

 ill d\ \ I ibes and by the cup-shaped group of toothed 

 -I aids hilow the pistil. 



specibsa, Benth. (Dipladenia Hdrrisii, Hook.), 

 ^hrubbj, branched climber: largest Ivs. 10-15 by 4-5 

 ill oblong tapermg, scarcely leathery, feather-veined, 

 tten purplish beneath; petioles stout, scarcely 1 in. 

 long racemes axillary and terminal; pedicels red, often 

 1 m long curbed downwards: corolla-tube with a round- 

 ish base about '2 in. long and thick, then suddenly con- 

 stritted, then gradually widening into a funnel-shaped 

 fl Brazil (.uiuna, Trinidad. B.M. 4825. -vy. m. 



0D0NT0GL6SSUM (Greek, tooth-tongue; in allusion 

 to the cnst on the labelluml. Orchidi)cew. A genus 

 of orchids embracing about ]00 spprii^-s. rintivns of tbe 

 higher regions of the Andes fmin M.m.-,. .-hhI i liint.iiiala 



to Colombia and Bolivia, ('n ;m ml ni ili. ii- lianil- 



some flowers these plants .Trc amcii- ihr tmm-i fii\.,iiu. 

 orchids of cultivators. O. i-risj,„i,i is ,,ii.- nf tin- tincst „i 

 all orchids. 



Plants epiphytic, with short rhizomes and 2-lvd. 

 pseudobulbs, often with sheathing leaves at the base: 

 fls. in few- to many-fld. racemes or panicles arising from 

 the base of the pseudobulb; s. pais ami jntals spread- 

 ing, free, or the lateral .sepaN ran 1> -.hm uliat united 

 at the base; base of the labillinn a-..ii,liii- jiarallil to 

 the column and sometimes a. lnair ti. ih.^ laitt-r; laieral 

 lobes small, often erect; middle lube large, spreading, 

 variously shaped ; column clavate, narrowed at the base, 

 longer than in Oncidium. 



This genus is closely related to Oncidium and Mil- 

 tenia, some of the species of the latter being generally 

 cultivated as Odontoglossums. These two genera are 

 easily distinguished from Odontoglossum by the label- 

 lum, which e.xpands directly from the base of the col- 

 umn. There is perhaps no genus of orchids in which 

 the specii-s m. mirc \ :irKililf and more closely related 



Hi;iNKI. II llAssKi.BIIIN.:. 



Odontoglossums follow the liin:lj w.-t. rn iii..uiitain 

 ranges from southern Mexico to smitlurn Peru, and 

 usually grow at great altitudes. With few exceptions, 

 they are found in extremely moist situations where the 

 annual rainfall is excessive and the temperature more 

 or less even and cool throughout the year. 



The extreme heat of our summer interferes somewhat 

 with the culture of Odontoglossums in America, espe- 

 cially those of the O. oriajntm section, and it is neces- 

 sary' to use every jirecaution during that season to 

 insure success. 



A lean-to or half-s]>aii nH.f stnicture of northern ex- 

 posure, protected by a luirk or si.im- wall on the south 

 side, and with ample m. ans i.f m ntilation, is best suited 

 to Odontoglossum cultuii'. Munuvir, it should be pro- 

 vided with rolling shades elevated on framework 18 or 

 20 in. above the glass, to afford abundance of light, free 

 access of air and requisite shade, with the additional 

 assistance of keeping down the temperature in summer. 

 The interior is best fitted with solid beds, if possible, 

 but benches of stone fiags or wood covered with ashes 

 or gravel an inch or two deep will answer very well. 



