BILLBERGIA. 75 



texture, cliannellecl down the face, thinly lepidote on the back, 

 without any marginal prickles. Peduncle not more than half as 

 long as the leaves. Inflorescence a lax 3-4-flowered spike ; flowers 

 all sessile, the lower with a lanceolate bract ^ in. long. Ovary 

 oblong-cylindrical, glabrous, ^ in. long ; sepals naked, linear- 

 oblong, f in. long. Petals narrow, twice as long as the calyx, 

 falcate from its top. Stamens nearly as long as the petals ; 

 anthers linear, yellow, ^ in. long. 



Hab. Brazil, Glaziou 13259 ! Keceived in 1882. Very distinct. 



13. B. Bakeri E. Morren in Belg. Hort. 1880, 166, t. 8(M.D.); 

 Wittm. Gartenzeit. 1885, fig. 23. B. 2>allescens Baker in Bot. Mag. 

 t. 6342, non K. Koch. — Leaves 8-10 in a utricular rosette, 

 connivent in the lower half foot, ensiform from an ovate base, 

 l-|-2 ft. long, 1|— 2 in. broad at the middle, moderately firm in 

 texture, plain green on the face, thinly white lepidote on the back 

 without distinct transverse bands, the marginal prickles minute. 

 Peduncle a foot long, the upper bract-leaves lanceolate, pink, 

 scariose, 3-4 in. long. Flowers 6-12 in a short cernuous spike, 

 all subsessile, with very minute bracts. Ovary oblong, green, 

 glabrous, ^ in. long, deeply sulcate ; sepals linear-oblong, f in. 

 long, green tipped with violet-blue. Petals 2 in. long, usually pale 

 green to the very tip, rarely obscurely tipped with violet-blue. 

 Stamens reaching to the tip of the petals. 



Hab. Brazil. Described from a plant that flowered at Kew, Dec, 1877. 

 Var. oxysepala Kegel. Descr. x. 25, is a form with more acute sepals sent lately 

 from Eio Janeiro by M. Lietz. Comes near the drooping forms of B. speciosa. 



14. B. viRiDiFLORA Wcndl. in Otto et Dietr. Gartenzeit. xxii. 

 154; Flore des Serres t. 1019—1020; E. Morren in Belg. Hort. 

 1874, t. 1—2, 1876, 324, t. 20— 21.— Leaves 12-15 in a utricular 

 rosette, connivent for the lower foot, ensiform from an ovate base, 

 1^-2|- ft. long, 1^-2 in. broad at the middle, plain green on the 

 face, thinly white-lepidote on the back, sometimes tinged with 

 purple and obscurely fasciated, narrowed gradually to the point, the 

 marginal prickles very minute. Peduncle 1-1|- ft. long, with 

 several large lanceolate, bright red ascending scariose bract-leaves. 

 Inflorescence a lax ascending or cernuous raceme |— 1 ft. long ; 

 pedicels slender, 1-2 in. long ; bracts minute, scariose. Ovary 

 oblong |- in. long, green, glabrous, not at all sulcate ; sepals 

 lanceolate, acute, green, an inch long. Stamens and style a little 

 longer than the petals. 



Hab. Brazil. First flowered in 1854, at the Herrenhausen Botanic 

 Garden. A very distinct species, still rare in cultivation. 



15. B. NUTANS Wendl. in Kegel Gartenfl. t. 617, E. Morren in 

 Belg. Hort. 1876, 220, t. 15 ; Baker in Bot. Mag. t. 6423. B. 

 Bonplandiana Gaudich. — Leaves 12-15 in a utricular rosette, linear, 

 1-1-1 ft. long, |- in. broad at the middle, not rigid in texture, 

 channelled down the green face, thinly lepidote on the back without 

 transverse bands, tapering to a long point, the marginal teeth very 

 obscure. Peduncle a foot long ; bract-leaves imbricated, the upper 

 ascending, lanceolate, bright red. Inflorescence a lax, few-flowered 



