ONCIDIUM. 43 



noticed by Dr. Lindley in Paxton's Flower Garden for 1851, on the 

 occasion of its being figured by M. Morren in a Belgian periodical, 

 under the name of Odontoglossum, phyllochilum, adding that ''it is an 

 old inhabitant of English gardens, where it has long been known 

 under the name of Oncidium, hastatum." It continued to be very rare 

 in British gardens till it was imported in quantity by Messrs. Low 

 and Co. in 1875, and about the same time a large number of plants 

 were sent to Europe by Roezl, who collected them in the neighbour- 

 hood of Colima near the Pacific coast, where this orchid is very 

 abundant. 



The aspect of Oncidium hastatum when in flower is remarkable ; its 

 long loose panicles over which its star-like flowers are not very thickly 

 scattered are made attractive by the surprising variety of colours, some 

 of strong contrast, to be seen in each flower. We know of no orchid 

 in which this peculiarity is more apparent. 



On. heteranthum. 



Pseudo bulbs ovoid, 2 inches long, much compressed, smooth and 

 ancipitous, diphyllous. Leaves linear, acute, 3 — 5 inches long. Scape 

 3 — 4 feet long, branched almost from the base, the branches 3 — 5 inches 

 long, the lower ones with a slender zigzag rachis and a short secundary 

 branch from each node. Flowers numerous, but all aborted except the 

 terminal one on each primary branch, the aborted flowers consisting of 

 five fihform, reflexed whitish segments, the perfect flowers f inch in 

 diameter ; sepals and petals cream-white with two — three broad brown 

 bars, the sepals linear-oblong, the petals broader, oval-oblong ; lip some- 

 what lyre-shaped, constricted near the truncate apex, the basal part 

 red-brown, the apical part yellow ; crest consisting of about nine 

 tubercles arranged in three transverse rows of two, four, and three. 

 Column hooded. 



Oncidium heteranthum, Poeppig et Endl. Nov. Gen, et Sp. I. [». 34, t. 60, ex 

 Lindl. Fol. Orch. Oncid. No. 187 (1855). 



A curious species first detected by the German botanist, Poeppig, 

 on the Andes of Bolivia more than half a century ago, and where 

 it was shortly afterwards gathered by Matthews. As will be seen 

 from the above description, the terminal flowers of the primary branches 

 of the panicle only are perfect, all the others being reduced to 

 thread-like segments longer than the organs they represent. This 

 pecuharity also occurs in a more irregular manner in Oncidium 

 abortivum, a native of Caracas. 



