CYPRIPEDIUM ASHBURTONILZ SUPERBUM. 
[Pate 400.] 
Garden Hybrid. 
Terrestrial. Leaves distichous, ligulate-acute, bright green above, reticulated 
with a deeper shade, pale green beneath, and from six to eight inches in length. 
Dorsal sepal broadly ovate, pure white in the upper half, tinged with bright 
light green near the base, streaked with rosy purple, and spotted with rich deep 
purple, lower sepals similar but smaller; petals spreading, oblong-obtuse, bright 
bo d 
purplish brown, passing into purple towards the apex, narrowly bordered with 
pale yellow, and bearing on the edge a fringe of reddish brown hairs; lip large, 
with spreading horns, bright brownish purple, the horns yellow. Staminode yellow, 
with a tinge of emerald-green in the centre. It is a cross between C. barbatwm 
superbum and C. insigne. 
CYPRIPEDIUM ASBURTONIE SUPERBUM. VVilliams’ New Plant Catalogue, 1889, 
p- 23. 
Many of our subscribers who are not Cypripedium growers may think that 
we are illustrating this genus somewhat too largely, but we consider there cannot 
be too many of them, if the species and the varieties are carefully selected, in 
order to weed out the poor and indistinct kinds. The taste for Cypripediums has 
become very popular of late years, and if an ordinary collection of good kinds 
is selected, flowers may be had every day in the year, so that there is a 
decided reason for the prevailing interest which is taken in them, and we hope 
it may continue. Orchid growers of all classes devote much attention to these 
plants, and since our old friend Dominy made it so plain how hybrids could be 
obtained, every grower appears to be raising them from seed, and some of them by 
thousands. This is very encouraging, but careful selection is necessary in choosing the 
parents, in order to produce brilliant colours and distinctness in form, both of 
which are required in order to permanently establish the popular taste. Some of 
the crosses which have been obtained, and are now young plants, should lead to 
some startling and wonderful results, far exceeding anything which has yet appeared, 
and which will render us independent, to a great extent, of foreign importations, 
save for the purpose of establishing new colours among our garden hybrids. | 
The form whose portrait we here lay before our readers, is a good one, 
being much superior in colour to the typical plant, and this shows the result of 
careful selection in the parents; it is the result of a cross between C. barbatum 
superbum and C. insigne, whilst the parents of C. Ashburtoni@ were C. barbatu 
and C. insigne. This plant was distributed to the public by us in the Spring of c 
