ORCHIDACEiE. 119 



slio;htly twisted spike. Labellum saccate at the base, mth an ovate 

 recurved point. Anther short, blunt. Beak of the stigma very short. 

 In fir-woods. Abundant in the north of Scotland, especially towards 

 the east. The southernmost station is at Dalmeny, six miles from 

 Edinburgh, where it was discovered by Mr. Claudio L. Serra. Tiie 

 next most southern stations are the Den of Dupplin and the woods of 

 Scone, Perthshire : it is also reported from Forfarshire. In Kincardine, 

 Aberdeen, Banff, and j\Ioray it is abundant, extending into Koss and 

 Inverness, which appear to be its northern limits. 



Scotland. Perennial. Late Summer, early Autumn. 



Rootstock slender, fleshy, creeping extensively among the rotting 

 leaves of the Scotch fir. Leaves appearing at the close of autunm and 

 remaining until the flowers fade in the autumn of the succeeding 

 year, 1 to 1^ inch long, gradually attenuated into petioles shorter 

 than the lamina, dark green, without any markings, somewhat fleshy. 

 Flowering stem 6 to 15 inches high, a few of the lowest leaves re- 

 sembling the radical ones, the rest sheathing and bractlike. Spike 

 1^ to 5 inches long, with numerous flowers turned to one side, and 

 slightly spiral. Bracts rather longer than the ovaries which they 

 embrace, acuminate or acuminate-cuspidate, subherbaceous. Perianth 

 segments about |- inch long, cream-white, all connivent; the sepals 

 ovate, the lateral ones oblique ; the labellum with an inflated saccate 

 protubei-ance in the lower half Rachis, bracts, ovary, and perianth 

 glandular-pubescent, with jointed hairs. 



Creeping Ladies' Tresses. 



French, Gooihjere ramjpante. German, Kriechencle Goodyere. 



GENUS X.—h I S T E R A. R. Brown. 



Perianth subherbaceous; segments spreading, or the 5 upper ones 

 connivent, free ; labellum turned downwards, not spurred, nearly flat, 

 pendulous, bifid at the apex, and sometimes toothed at the base, not 

 contracted in the middle. Column short or very short. Rostellum 

 elongated, entire, with a smaU round appendage at the apex. Anther 

 sessile, applied to the rostellum; pollen-masses clavate, attached to a 

 minute common gland ; pollen mealy. 



Herbs ^vith slender fasciculated root-fibres. Stems commonly with 

 a pair of opposite or subopposite leaves some distance above the 

 base, below which the stem has merely a few sheaths at the base. 

 Flowers small, minute, greenish, pointing in all directions, in a rather 

 lax raceme. 



The name of this genus of plants was given to it in honour of Dr. Martin Lister. 



