940 



THE ORCHIDS OF THE BOMBAY PRESIDENCY. 



By 



G. A. Gammib, f.l.s. 

 Part IV. (With Plate III.) 



Continued from page 37 of this Volume.) 

 9. PHAJUS. 



An epiphyte. Stems clustered, pendulous, leafless after bearing- 

 flowers in the first season's growth. Leaves two ranked. Flowers 

 white, in a close, terminal raceme, bracts nearly as long as the flowers, 

 persistent, sepals and petals subequal, lip joined to the base of and 

 embracing the foot of the column, anther incompletely 4-celled, 

 pollinia 8, attached by fours to a large granular viscus. 



1. Phajus albus, Lindl., Fl. Br. Ind,, p. 818. 



Stems usually not more than a foot long, leafy throughout in the first 

 year. Leaves soft in texture, blueish beneath, oblong or linear lanceo- 

 late, long pointed. Raceme 2 to 8 flowered, bracts up to 2^ inches 

 long, narrowly boat shaped, acute ; sepals and petals up to 3^ inches 

 long, pure white, lip shovel-shaped, white with purple or red veins, side 

 Lobes narrow elongate, ciliate, midlobe broad, toothed, crisped and ciliate, 

 disk with five crested ridges. 



Distribution. — Localized on the Northern Konkan Ghats. Flowers during the 

 rainy season. 



Plate III. — Phajus albus, Fig. 1. Part of plant in flower. Fig. 2. 

 Lip (enlarged). Fig. 3. Column (enlarged). Fig. 4. Anther cap 

 (enlarged). Drawn by Mr. R. K. Bhide. The reproduction of the 

 purple lines on the lip is coarse and unsatisfactory and does injustice 

 to its real beauty. 



3. Phajus albus, Lindl. — (Native name unknown). This beautiful epiphyte 

 does not appear to be prevalent largely in the Konkans. Though Nairne 

 cites "the Konkan" as its habitat, he does not specify whether it is found in 

 the North or the South Konkan. Hooker, however, says that it is found on 

 the Matheran Hill, probably on the authority of Mr. H. M. Birdwood. But 

 in Mr. Birdwood's Catalogue of the Flora of Matheran and Mahableshwar 

 (2nd Ed., 1897) against this plant the remark is: — "Mahableshwar. Rare. 

 (Fairbank)." Matheran is not mentioned at all. I have not met with this 

 orchid in the Thana and Ratnagiri Districts. Nor has my friend and old fellow- 

 student Dr. Dalgado of Savantwadi, found it either in the " Wari Country" 

 or in Goa. Near forty years ago, Dr. Narayan Daji, G.G. M.C., of Bombay, had 



