PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS. 331 



call to our assistance some of that wonderful energy developed during thg war 

 and divert it to the great work before us. 



Certainly one of the outstanding features that emerges from a record of 

 botanical research during the last decade or two is the prominent position 

 occupied by plant-breeding on Mendelian lines. In proof of this we have the 

 numerous well-equipped plant-breeding institutes established and maintained 

 by Government and private funds. Plant-breeding is now in the forefront in 

 relation to the improvement of crops, and the value of it is officially acknow- 

 ledged as ' a vital element in the national policy.' According to the Secretary 

 of the Board of Agriculture, what we want ' are new races of plants adapted 

 to intensify cultivation, and.' he adds, 'it is my deliberate opinion that an 

 increase in the production of our land is much more easily attainable in that 

 direction than in any other.' 



The following Papers were then rea»d : — 



1. Orchids of Hants and Dorset. By Colonel M. J. Godfrey, F.L.S. 



Malaxii paludosa Sw. New Forest, rare ; only British orchid with epiphyllous 

 buds. Neottin nidxis avis L. Infrequent ; essentially subterranean, only throw- 

 ing up flowering stem to secure cross-fertilisation and dissemination of seed, 

 sometimes flowering underground. Listera ovrita Br. Common. L. cordata Br. 

 Found near Branksome in 1895, perhaps introduced with pines. Spiranthes 

 autmn7ialis Rich. Not infrequent, chalk downs and limestone pastures, also 

 grows in sand. Sp. cestivalis Rich. Extremely rare, one locality in New Forest. 

 Cephalanthera grandiflora L. Not uncommon; self-fertilised, once seen visited 

 by Bo7nhus lucoruvi. C. ensi folia Rich. Rare, absent from Isle of Wight. 

 tlpipaftis palustris Cr. Not common, the only British Epipactis fertilised by 

 hive-bees. E. latifolia All. Not uncommon. E. violacea Dur. Dusq. Very 

 rare ; both the latter fertilised by wasps. Platanthera chlorantha Rchb. Not 

 common, frequent in Isle of Wight. P. bifolia Rchb. Rather rare. Coelo- 

 r/lossum viride Hartm. Rare, abundant near Winchester. Gymnad enia conopsea 

 Br. Local, chalk downs, rarely in marshy .ground ; seeds protected from rain 

 by closing of capsules. Herminiiim monorrhis Br. Rare. Ophrys aranifera. 

 Very rare. 0. muscifera Huds. Rare; a hybrid with aranifera occurs in Kent. 

 0. apifera Huds. Generally distributed, near Winchester tends to vary in the 

 direction of TroJlii. 



Orchis mascula L. Locally abundant, rarely white. 0. morio L. Locally 

 plentiful ; a specimen with three lips throws doubt on Darwin's theory that lip is 

 compounded of one petal and two anthers. 0. ustulata L. Rai'e ; is said to smell 

 like heliotrope. 0. latifolia L. with ring-spotted leaves, 0. prcetermissa Druce, 

 unspotted, essentially marsh plants, occur also (sparingly) high and dry on 

 Winchester downs. 0. inramata L. Local, sometimes rose-pink fading white, 

 sometimes red purple, sometimes bluish purple with carmine spots. A white 

 variety is recorded from the New Forest. 0. maculata L. abundant. 0. 

 ericetorum Linton. Usually regarded as a variety of wnculnfa, occurs on peat 

 bogs and damp heaths, has considei-able claims to specific distinction. Anacamp- 

 tis pi/ramidalis Rich. Frequent on the chalk, rarely pure white. 



Natural Hybrids. — ^Most frequent in the genus Orchis, between incarnata, 

 latifolia^ pratcrmissa, and maculata. The following occur in the Winchester 

 marshes : incarnata x latifolia, incarnata x pro'termissa, incarnata x maculata, 

 latifolia x prajcrmissa, latifolia x maculata, and prcetermissa x macidata, 

 except incarnata x maculata, which I have only seen in Anglesey, though it 

 probably grows near Winchester. Marsh orchids grow intermingled, and are 

 sufficiently similar for insects to visit them indiscriminately. Bi-gieneric 

 Hybrids. — On Winchester Downs occur : — Gymnadenia conopsea X Orchis 

 maculata, Coeloglossum viride x Orchis maculata, C. viride X Orchis latifolia 

 (probably found nowhere else in the world), and C. viride X Gymnadenia 

 conopsea remarkable as a cross between a very short-spurred and a very long- 

 spurred orchid. Aceras anthropophorn. Very rare if not extinct in Hants, has 

 been seen fertilised by Platychirus manicatus, visiting the flowers to lay egg.s 

 amongst aphides. 



