vow) 
29 
22. 
2.8. 
PL. CCCXLIX. 
DENDROBIUM MACCARTHIAE tTuwalres. 
Mrs MACCARTHY’S DENDROBIUM. 
DENDROBIUM. Vide Lindenia, Engl. ed., vol. I, p. 37. 
Dendrobium MacCarthiae, Pseudobulbi subpenduli, flagelliformes, teretes, striati, versus apicem foliati, 0.3-0.6 m. 
longi, nodis parce tumidis. Folia pauca, lanceolata, acuta, 6-10 cm. longa. Racemi laterales, 2-5-flori, pedicellis 
gracilibus. Flores speciosi, pallide purpurei. Sepala oblongo-lanceolata, acuta. Petala subaequilonga, latiora. Labellum 
subtrilobum v. subtrapeziforme, apice subacuta v. subrotundata, disco atropurpureo. Columna albida, subquadrata. 
Mentum conicum, obtusum. 
Dendrobium MacCarthiae THWaAITES in Hoox. Bot. Mag., LXXXI (1855), t. 4886. —Ip., Enum. Ceyl. IE, 
p- 297- — LINDL. in Gard. Chron., 1856, p. 692. — BATEM. Sec. Cent. Orch., t. 158. — WaRN. & WILL. Orch. 
Album, VII, t. 319. — VeITcH Man. Orch., pt. II, pp. 57, 58, cum xyl. — Hook. F. Fl. Brit. Ind., V, p. 736. 
his handsome Dendrobium is a native of Ceylon, and was originally 
discovered by Dr Tuwarres, Director of the Botanic Garden at Pera- 
deniya, during a trip which he made into the jungles in the south of 
the island. Above eighty important additions to the Cingalese flora are said to 
have been made at the same time. Plants were sent to the Royal Gardens at 
Kew, in 1855, and it was figured in the Botanical Magazine in December of that 
year. Dr Tuwarres remarks. — “ This beautiful species of Dendrobium, which 
seems hitherto to have escaped the observation of botanists in Ceylon, occurs 
sparingly, pendant from the trunks of large trees, in the forests about Ratuopoora 
and towards Galle, where it seemed to be pretty generally known to the natives 
under the name of “ Wissakmal, ” the meaning of which is * Rainy-month flower, ” 
or “ May-flower. ” He also pronounced it to be the most beautiful of Cingalese 
Orchids, and dedicated it to Mrs MacCarrtuy, the wife of the Colonial Secretary 
of the island at the time of its discovery. 
It is a rather slow grower, and requires considerable care in order to keep 
it healthy. The temperature of its native habitat is said to be very equable, and 
to range between about 24° and 30° Centigrade (75° to 86° Fahrenheit), and 
throughout the year showers are sufficiently numerous to keep delicate ferns 
quite fresh and growing, while during the rainy season, from May to about 
August the rainfall is abundant. These circumstances indicate the conditions 
under which it must be cultivated. It should receive plenty of heat, light and 
water. After its growths are finished, which is often rather late in the season, it 
should be removed to a somewhat cooler and drier situation, so that it may 
have a few weeks’ rest. Care, however, must be taken to avoid letting the 
compost become too dry, so as to prevent the plant from shrivelling. 
kom) 
