40 THE ORCHID REVIEW. [ FEERUARY, 1912. 
brown, the petals lilac, and the lip large, prettily frilled, and of a pale 
lilac shade. This ranks as one of the cheapest Orchids, and is worthy of 
extensive culture. 
HYBRIDISATION OF ZYGOPETALUM MACKAYI. 
OwING to the curious phenomenon of this Orchid producing only ‘* false” 
hybrids when crossed with Lycaste, Odontoglossum and Phaius, it may be 
interesting to mention a remark made to me which opens up the possibility 
of obtaining real hybrids from a second generation. It is said that when 
beardless and bearded wheats were intercrossed, the hybrids produced were 
all beardless, but when these were again crossed with one of the parents, 
the offspring were fairly intermediate between the two. I suggest that 
Zygopetalum Mackayi be crossed, both ways, with Odontoglossum crispum, 
and the resulting seedlings, when in flower, be united again with the 
Odontoglossum parent. It seems possible that real hybrids, showing 
distinct traces of the Odontoglossum, might thus be obtained. I may add 
that, as a preliminary step, I have crossed Zygopetalum Mackayi with 
Odontoglossum crispum, Oncidium flexuosum and O. tigrinum. 
C. ALWyn HARRISON. 
‘Mr. Harrison raises an old but very interesting question at an 
opportune time, as the Zygopetalum is now in bloom. We do not 
remember if this particular experiment has been tried with Odontoglcssum, 
but it is said to have been carried out with Lelia anceps, the result of a 
second cross being still Zygopetalum, pure and simple (O.R., xi. p. 4). 
Such a result is mysterious, to say the least, and the time seems ripe for 
some experiments upon rather different lines. Zygopetalum is now 
reported to have been crossed with at least seven different genera, the 
resulting seedlings amounting to several hundreds, but in no case could the 
influence of the pollen parent be detected. We should like to see all these 
crosses reversed, and Zygopetalum pollen is common enough. It is said that 
such crosses refuse to take, but we do not know how far the experiment has 
been carried out. The secondary cross suggested by Mr. Harrison could be 
made at once, for at the R.H.S. meeting held on January 9th, Messrs. 
James Veitch & Sons exhibited a batch of .Zygopetalums that ought to 
have been hybrids with Odontoglossum crispum, but, as usual, there was 
no trace of the latter. We have a suspicion that in such cases fertilisation 
proper does not take place at all, a point which is alluded to on another 
page. We believe that in some of the above cases Zygopetalum inter- 
medium was used, not the original Z. Mackayi (Bot. Mag., t. 2748), for 
which the former often does duty in gardens. The mistake arose when 
Lindley figured what he called Eulophia Mackaiana in the Botanical 
Register (t. 1433), with Zygopetalum Mackayi, Hook., asa synonym.—EpD.}. 
a. 
