Marcu, 1914.] THE ORCHID REVIEW. 75 
These plants are for the most part reduced to a tuft of much elongated 
roots, the stem from which the short racemes arise, being nearly obsolete. 
In Angrecum aphyllum, however, the stem is much elongated, and the very: 
numerous racemes are borne from the nodes—the points which would be 
normally the axils of the leaves. 
T2NIOPHYLLUM is a large Asiatic genus, allied to Saccolabium, ranging 
from North India, Ceylon, and Japan, through the Malayan Peninsula and 
Archipelago and the Philippines, to North Australia and several of the: 
Polynesian Islands. The species now number about fifty, and one of them 
has been cultivated at Kew, though otherwise they are scarcely known in 
cultivation. They have numerous green fleshy roots, which creep along 
the bark, very short or nearly obsolete stems, and short racemes of minute 
flowers. In a few cases narrow strap-shaped leaves are produced, in 
reference to which the name was given. 
Sarcochilus has a few leafless or nearly leafless species, S. luniferus. 
being a charming little plant which flowered at Kew some years ago, when 
it was figured at t. 7044 of the Botanical Magazine. It isa native of Burma,. 
and.was discovered by the.Rev. C. Parish. It is practically»stemless, and 
bears racemes of bright yellow flowers, spotted with bright red-brown, and’ 
occasionally has a pair of narrow leaves, though the function of nutrition is 
chiefly carried on by the fleshy chlorophyll-bearing roots. S$. usneoides is. 
another Indian species, while S. phyllorhizus occurs as far away as North 
Queensland. 
Doritis tzeniale sddasly resembles a dwarf species of Phalenopsis, and: 
has racemes of rosy flowers. It also is a native of Burma, and flowered at 
Kew in March, 1886, together with a pure white variety. They were both 
painted at Kew by Mr. John Day (Orch. Draw., |. t. 7). They were sent 
from Moulmein with Phalenopsis Parishii, and were supposed to be that 
until they flowered. 
The handsome Phalenopsis Lowii, now rarely seen in cultivation, is. 
said to be deciduous, and there is a Chinese leafless species, namely, P 
Wilsonii, Rolfe, which was collected on rocks in Western China at 4500: 
feet elevation by Mr. E.. H. Wilson. It has pretty pink flowers over an 
inch across, and is not known in cultivation. 
Thus we see that leafless Orchids occur in several genera of the great 
epiphytic subtribe Sarcanthez, and in each great tropical division of the 
globe. The condition may be regarded as an extreme adaptation against 
drought, and one may trace the course of development. In the first place 
the leaves began to shrivel in the dry season, and the deciduous character 
was accompanied by a development of chlorophyll in the aérial roots. 
Finally the roots having taken upon themselves the function of nutrition, the: 
plants ceased to develop leaves. It is almost a romance. 
