98 THE ORCHID REVIEW. [May-JuNr, 1919. 
Bs 
SEXES OF CATASETUM RODIGASIANUM. eG) 
% E female flowers of a good many species of Catasetum are still 
unknown, but a plant of C. Rodigasianum at the Royal Botanical 
Garden, Glasnevin, has produced an inflorescence of each sex, which have 
been kindly sent by Sir Frederick W. Moore, with a view to completing the 
history of the species. This particular plant was obtained from Messrs. 
‘Sanders, St. Albans, in 1916. C. Rodigasianum is a native of Brazil, and 
was originally introduded from the province of Santa Catherina by Messrs. 
_ Linden, in whose establishment at Brussels it bloomed in June, 1890, when 
it was described and figured (Rolfe in Lindenia vi. p-.41, t. 259). We have 
several times seen the species since, but always until now with the male 
inflorescence only. The species belongs to the section Myanthus, and is an 
ally of C. Trulla, Lindl. The male flowers are numerous, borne in an 
“arching raceme, and the lanceolate sepals and petals green, copiously blotched 
with brown. The lip is ovate, concave, with an involute, fimbriate margin, 
-and a tridentate apex, the central tooth being thickened into a prominent 
callus, while the colour is greenish buff, with numerous ring-like. red-brown 
‘dots. The column is elongated, and the antenne slender, parallel at the 
base, then diverging on each side of the fieshy callus of the lip, and the 
anther case and pollinia are normal. The female flowers, as usual, are very 
different. Those sent are four in number, and borne in an erect inflorescence. 
The sepals and petals are shorter and broader than in the males, and the colour ~ 
green, with numerous small, dark brown spots. The lip is uppermost, 
‘deeply saccate, very fleshy, with a neatly denticulate margin, and the 
colour light green, with numerous darker longitudinal veins inside, and 4 
few dark brown dots outside. The column is very short and stout, with a 
‘concave stigma but without antennz or pollinia, In addition to their very 
different appearance, the female flowers are rather over twice as heavy as 
the males, the four-flowered female inflorescence weighing rather more than: 
the eight-flowered male, with about the same length of the rachis attached 
in each case. The male inflorescence is much fewer-flowered than usual, 
possibly because of the extra strain on the plant. It is interesting to obtain 
the females of another species of this remarkable genus, and it may be 
added that coloured drawings of both sexes have b 
een made for preservation 
at Kew. 
It may be added that there are now about twenty-five species of 
‘Catasetum of which both sexes are known, but this probably represents 
less than half the genus, and it js unfortunate that more of the species are 
not in cultivation at the present time. : 
