548 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[Mat 25. 1912 



NEW OR NOTEWORTHY 



PLANTS. 



COTYLEDON RACEMOSA, E. Mey. 



This rare plant is now flowering in the Royal 

 Botanic Gardens, Kew, probably for the first 

 time in Europe. It was discovered by Drege 

 about 80 years ago in Little Namaqualand, in 

 the vicinity of the Orange River, and appears 

 to have been only twice collected since, once 

 near Oograbis Poort by Dr. Bolus (No. 9,546), 

 and during the Percy Sladen Expedition to the 

 Orange River in 1910 by Prof. Pearson (No. 

 6,196), who sent the plant, which is now in flower, 

 to Kew. The whole plant is 8 inches high, with 



stout succulent stem, bearing short branches 

 thickly clothed with linear-lanceolate, fleshy 

 leaves and terminating in a short raceme or 

 panicle of erect white flowers. 



As this species is very inaccurately described 

 in the Flora Capensu, the following account 

 from the living plant will be useful to future 

 monographers : — 



Plant 6 to 8 inches high. Main stem § inch 



about equalling the corolla-tube, lanceolate- 

 attenuate, very acute, glabrous., light green. 

 Corolla five-lobed; tube 4 lines long, 2^ lines in 

 diameter, pale green ; lobes nearly 3 lines long, 2^ 

 lines broad, broadly ovate, acute, recurved- 

 spreading, white. Stamens 10, included, at first 

 all collected around the styles, finally moving 

 away and pressed close against the inside of the 

 corolla tube ; pollen yellow. 



The movement of the stamens is doubtless to 

 secure cross-fertilisation. The anthers open out- 

 wards, and are so closely packed around the 

 stigmas, with their backs against the latter, that 

 no pollen gets upon them, whflst an insect seek- 

 ing the nectar would be certain to get its head or 

 back well dusted with pollen. During this posi- 

 tion the stigmas appear to be unreceptive, but 

 w r hen the stamens have discharged their pollen, 

 they move away and are pressed close against 

 the corolla-tube, their backs being turned to- 

 wards the stigmas, which are now turned slightly 

 outwards, and have their papillae fully developed 

 and receptive. Any insect already dusted with 

 pollen from another flower, upon visiting a flower 

 in the receptive condition could scarcely avoid 

 contact with the stigmas and so would fertilise 



thick, erect, branching at the upper part, gla- the flower. N. E. Brown. 



Fig. 171. — schizocodon soldanelloides: flowers pink. 



brous, with a thin sub-membranous, greenish- 

 brown bark, peeling off like skin ; leafless. 

 Branches 1 to 1£ inch long, densely leafy, per- 

 haps deciduous after flowering, glabrous, green. 

 Leaves crowded, alternate spreading, directed all 

 ways, softly fleshy and flexible, J to 2 inches 

 long, 2£ to 5 lines broad, 1£ line thick, linear- 

 lanceolate or narrowly oblanceolate, acute and 

 often recurved at the apex, tapering to a sessile 

 base (not sheathing, as described), channelled down 

 the face, thinly pubescent with very fine, short, 

 spreading hairs, light green, not at all glaucous. 

 Peduncles terminal, solitary on each branch, 

 li to 2 inches long, erect, racemose, racemose- 

 paniculate or rarely corymbose-paniculate at the 

 upper half and with one or two very reduced 

 leaves 2£ to 6 lines long on the lower half, glab- 

 rous throughout or thinly and inconspicuously 

 pubescent on the lower part, tinted with dull 

 purplish-brown. Bracts 1£ to 4£ lines long, 

 linear-lanceolate, acute, resembling reduced 

 leaves, ot the smaller subulately tapering from a 

 broad base, fleshy, becoming membranous when 

 dried. Flowers erect. Pedicels 2 to 5 lines 



l° n o> glabrous. 



SCHIZOCODON SOLDANELLOIDES. 



Eveb since the introduction of this interesting 

 plant (see fig. 171), about 20 years ago, by the 

 late Capt. Torrens, of Boston Manor, Hayes, it 

 has been one of the chief subjects of interest to 

 lovers of hardy plants. Those who have been 

 successful in its culture can thoroughly appre- 

 ciate its beautiful, bronzy foliage and charming 



pink flowers, which are heavily fringed. The 

 plant belongs to a small, though most interest- 

 ing Natural Order, Diapensiacese, members of 

 which are found in widely-separated countries — 

 North America and Japan. Shortia is a well- 

 known genus belonging to the Order. There are 

 two species of Shortia in cultivation : one, S. 

 galacifolia, only found in North Carolina; the 

 other, S. uniflora, only found in Japan. There 

 is also said to be a third epecies, not yet intro- 

 duced, which is found in China. Another popu- 

 lar garden plant is the North American Galax - 

 aphylla, with its large, beautifully -bronzed 

 leaves, which are so much used in table decora 

 tion ; while Diapensia lapponica, which gives its 



hibit, with pinky-white flowers. The last is 4 

 diJicult plant to cultivate in the south. 



Schizocodon soldanelloides is of tufted habit 

 with rounded leaves on petioles about 2 inches 

 long, and the plant spreads by means of under- 

 ground runners which produce rosettes of leaves 

 at their extremities. The Soldanella-like flowers 

 are produced in racemes of three or four, on sterna 

 about 3 or 4 inches in height. The plant requires 

 the conditions and treatment which apply to 

 Shortia, namely, a cool, peaty soil, in a shel- 

 tered position, protected from excessive sunshine 

 and cold winds. It is an ideal plant for the 

 Alpine house when grown in pots or pans, in a 

 frame with a northern aspect, but it resents 

 disturbance at the roots. 



INTERNATIONAL SHOW. 



ORCHIDS IN 1866 AND 1912. 



Great events like International Exhibitions 

 serve to indicate the course of progress which 

 time has brought about in the special branch** 

 of horticulture. The full extent of that progress 

 even the expert, who has been constantly in 

 touch with the subject, fails to realise without 

 comparing the plants representative of different 

 epochs. To those who are among the things 

 daily one novelty follows another seemingly in 

 natural sequence, and the extent and value of the 

 gains are scarcely realised. 



But a review of the Orchids staged at the great 

 International Horticultural Exhibition of 1"" 



.tIM. 



with a passing glance at the display on the occa- 

 sion of the Orchid Conference in 1885, and a 

 knowledge of the subjects now available in 1912 

 tell of one of the most interesting phases of 

 horticultural progress ever recorded. 



The results of this progress may be summed up 

 in a few words. The Orchids at the show of 

 1866 were species and varieties ; those at the 

 1885 exhibition marked the turn of the tide in 

 favour of the hybridist, whereas the display of 

 this year places the hybrid Orchids in the 

 majority, and demonstrates that by the aid of 

 hybridisation the variety of form and colour 

 ttained has wrought a beneficial change, not 

 only in the effect, but in the general interest of 

 the Orchid section of modern horticultural ex- 

 hibitions. 



In 1866 the largest class was one for 50 exotn 

 Orchids, of any kind, in flower, the prizes amount 

 ing to £55, and the only entry was that by Robert 

 Warner, Esq., Broomfield, Chelmsford, his speci- 

 mens being Aerides Fieldingii, A. virens. U 

 varieties of Cattleya Mossise, C. Skinnen, Chysis 

 l£evis, C. Limminghei, Cypripedium barbatuin 

 (two varieties), C. hirsutissimum, C. Hookers, 

 C. villosum, Dendrobium crepitatum, D. densi 

 florum, D. nobile, and two other Dendrobiumi. 

 Laelia purpurata, L. Schilleriana ; Odontog ossum 

 citrosmum, 0. Karwinskii; Oncidium ampl»t u "» 

 majus, O. sphacelatum ; Phaius J alhctoi. 

 Phaltenopsis amabilis, two varieties of P- S ran 

 flora, P. intermedia Porteri, P. Schilleriana, 

 Trichopilia crispa (2 feet across and with man 

 flowers) ; Vanda insignis, V. suavis, «»<**» 

 varieties of V. tricolor. That may be take " 

 a typical collection, and most of the species 

 to 'be found in the exhibits in other classes ».*. 

 in one or other, Dendrobium formosum g»g*»* 

 and some other Dendrobiums ; Odontoplo^J 

 Pescatorei, O. naevium, O. cordatum; ltf« 

 Skinneri; Aerides odoratum, A. crispum; <~ F 

 pedium kevigatum, C. caudatum ; ^ and * " ' 

 Saccolabium guttatum, S. curvifohum, ana . 

 other showy species. The plants * e ™ chl V 

 large and finely-grown specimens, ana w v 

 cipal exhibitors included Mr. Turner ot i* 

 ter, Mr. Leaf, Streatham, Mrs- Tredwei, ^ 

 wood, Mr. Wentworth W. Buller, hxei , 

 Cooper, London, Mr. Brand, Balham, , tne 

 of Northumberland, and Mr. V ■ . A1 %"" mit tee), 

 chairman of the M.S. Floral Commi^ 

 also Messrs. Jas. Veitch & Sons, -Mr. d. • 



Sepals 5, erect, 4 lines long. name to the Order, is an Arctic plant of prostrate liams, Mr. W 



