58 ORCHIDS 



Arachnanthe. 



Orchids comjDrise it : one is Himala)'an, and the rest 

 inhabit the Mala}'an Archipelago. The flowers ha\-e been 

 fancifully likened unto spiders; hence the generic name, from 

 ai-aclnu\ a spider, and aiit/u\ a flower. Flowers showy, 

 sepals and petals free, spreading, rather thick ; lip articu- 

 lated at the base of the column, erect or spreading, neither 

 saccate nor spurred at the base ; lateral lobes erect, or 

 rarel}' obsolete, the middle one flesh}-, polj^morphous, often 

 gibbous, or with a ver\- short spur at back ; column short, 

 thick ; pollen-masses two ; peduncles lateral, elongated, 

 simple or branched. Lca\'es distichous, flesh)--coriaceous, 

 sometimes very long, sometimes shorter or falcate, often 

 obliquel}- bilobed at apex. The four or fi\e species in- 

 cluded here ha\-e, from time to time, been remo\-ed from 

 one genera to another in a m)'sterious manner. They 

 ha\-e appeared under Epidoidrmn, Rciiaitthcra, Esmeralda, 

 and I'aiida. Under the last name some are still retained 

 in gardens. The species require similar treatment to that 

 advised for Acridcs and allied genera. A. Cathcartii grows 

 best in an exposed position at the warm, moist end of the 

 Cattlcya or intermediate-house. During the active season 

 of growth, the plant should have frequent sprayings. If 

 placed against a wall the roots get hold, and this consider- 

 abl}^ assists them. The roots being principall)- aerial, little 

 potting is required. 



A. bella (Rclib. /.). — As the s[)ccific name suggests, this is a 

 handsome plant. Sepals and petals light ochre, barred cinnamon, 

 straight, cuneate-oblong ; lip white, the lateral segments striped 

 purplLsh-brown, the middle one very broad, tumid, the basilar, 

 roundish callus white, spotted with brown ; raceme, four-flowered. 

 Leaves 5in. long, lin. broad, shining, unequally bilobed at the 

 apex. iSSS. Syn. Esmeralda bclla. 



A. Cathcartii ( /Av/ ///.). —"No more remarkable Orchid has 

 been found in Northern India." So wrote Dr. Lindley at the 

 time of its introduction in 1864. Subsequent knowledge com- 

 pels us to somewhat modify this verdict, but A. Cathcartii still 

 remains one of the most striking of Orchids. The tall stems 

 are terete, and l)ear t\vo opjiosite rows of pale green, narrowly- 

 oblong leaves, about 6in. long, and unevenly lobed at the end. 

 The flowers are 3in. to 4in. in diameter, and are produced, 

 four or five together, on stout racemes. The sepals and petals 

 are broad-oblong, ovedapping each other; the ground-colour 



