PLEUROTHALLIS. 6 



deeper purple, rounded at the tip, and witli two teeth opposite the 



very short claw." Column yellowish. 



Pleurothallis Barberiana, Kchb. in Gard. Chron. XVI. (1881), p. 6. But. Mag. 

 t. 6886. Masdevallia Culex, Hort. 



The above description conveys but an imperfect conception of this 



miniature orchid^ which is well deserving a place in every collection 



on account of the singular beauty and curious structure of its 



flowers that have the fanciful resemblance of a species of gnat. 



It was introduced by Messrs. Low and Co., of Clapton, who gave 



no locality, but the plant is generally believed to be of Colombian origin. 



It is dedicated to Mr. Barber, of Spondon, near Derby. 



P. insignis. 



Stems slender, 1 — 2 inches long. Leaves linear-oblong, as long as the 

 stems. Peduncles as long as the leaves, tAvo or more flowered. Flowers 

 large for the genus ; sepals ovate-lanceolate, prolonged into slender tails 

 2 inches long, yellowish white with longitudinal red streaks on the 

 dilated part; petals linear-oblong, "toothed at the tip, and with a fili- 

 form tail as long as the sepals inserted between the teeth " ; lip three- 

 , lobed, the lateral lobes linear, turned upwards and outwards, colourless, 

 the middle lobe linear-oblong, obscurely papillose, with a dense tuft of 

 small bristles at the apex, chocolate red. 



Pleurothallis insiguis, Kolfe in Gard. Chron. I. s. 3 (1887), p. 477. Bot. Mag. 

 t. 6936. 



This is one of the larg^t flowered species of Lleurothallis yet 



known ; the sepals are prolonged into slender tails like those of a 



Masdevallia, and its curiously -shaped bearded lip reminds one of the 



closely allied species, Pleurothallis glossopogon, which it much resembles, 



and under which name it was first distributed. It differs, however, from 



that species in its much larger flowers in which the sepals are not 



puberulous, also in the form of the leaves, and in some other 



minor characters. It was introduced by us in 1879 from New 



Granada. 



P. Leucopyramis. 



Stems 2 — 3 inches high, slender, invested with dark brown, almost 

 blackish membraneous sheaths. Leaves lanceolate-ligulate, as long as the 

 stems. Peduncles slender, erect racemose, the rachis zigzag, many- 

 flowered. Flowers white ; upper sepal lanceolate, arched, keeled behind ; 

 connate lateral sepals similar, two-keeled, bidentate at the apex; jjetals 

 and lip very minute, rhombeo-ligidate Column tridentate at the apex. 



Pleurothallis Leucopyramis, Rchb. in Linnaea XLI. p. 47 (1877). Id. Xen. Orch, 

 III. p. 14. 



