20 ORCHIDS 



Structure and other Peculiarities. 



leaves rather than the blossoms that attract the horticul- 

 turist, as in the case of the exquisite species of Amrcto- 

 chillis and Goodj'cra, the rich green or purplish leaves of 

 which are traversed by a beautiful network of gold or 

 silver \-eins. Some species of Plialixnopsis and of Cvpri- 

 pedimn have prettily-marked foliage. On the whole, how- 

 ever, the Orchid family is conspicuously wanting in species 

 with ornamental foliage. 



The odours of Orchids are most diverse, \'arying e\-en 

 in the same species at different stages of its existence. 

 Some have an especiall)' delicious and almost over- 

 powering fragrance, such as A'eridcs odoratiiiii and Ly caste 

 aroniatica. j\Ir. Bateman enumerates onl)' a fe\\- of the 

 various odours which the}' represent when he likens the 

 scent of Stankopea graiidiflora to that of a chemist's 

 shop, that of Bulbophylliivi cocoinin/i to cocoa-nut milk, of 

 Oiicidiuni oriiithorliyncIiHiii to fresh ha}', of Gongora 

 galeata to wallflowers, of Maxillaria atropiirpitrea to 

 violets, of Acrides odoratinii to pomatum, of Epidendrutn 

 aiiisatitin to aniseed, of E. iiinbcllatuiii to angelica, of 

 Maxillaria crassifolia to nO)'eau, of I^ycas/c aroniatica to 

 cinnamon, of Gongora atropiirpiirca to allspice, of 

 Burlingtonia {Rodriguezia) Candida to citron, of Dendro- 

 biiiin nwschatnm to musk, and of CycnocJics Loddigcsii 

 to honey. Bulbophylliini Bcccari and Alasdevallia vilifcra 

 have a disgustingly foetid odour. The odour of some — 

 as of Epidcndriini iioctiirnuni and Brassavola (nodosa) 

 grandiflora — is only perceptible at night. Among our 

 British Orchids there are several — such as the Butterfly 

 Orchis {Habcnaria bifolia chlorantha) and the Sweet-scented 

 Orchis [Gyninadcnia Conopsca) — the fragrance of which is 

 greatly intensified towards e\'ening. 



Some species give out different scents at different times, 

 such as Dendrobiiun nobilc, ^\■hich smells like grass in the 

 evening, like honey at noon, and has in the morning a 

 faint odour of primroses ; while some, such as one or "two 

 species of Epidendruin, are fragrant in the morning and 

 scentless at night. In others the fragrance is per- 

 ceptible only in the evening. Our common British 

 Purple Orchis {O. mascula) is remarkably variable in 

 this respect— while faintly fragrant during the day, it is at 

 night often so unpleasant in odour as to be unbearable in a 



