NovEMBER, 1910.] THE ORCHID REVIEW. 329 
ORCHISERAPIAS COMPLICATA, 
UNDER the title ‘‘A New Italian Orchid,” a figure and notice were 
published in a recent issue of Nature (vol. Ixxxiv. p. 104), by Mr. W, 
Herbert Cox, of what was regarded as ‘“‘a species of Italian Orchid which 
has not before been discovered.” ‘The author remarked: ‘‘ When first I 
found it, I believed it to be Serapias triloba, but, having studied various 
authorities, I have since come to the conclusion that I was wrong. They 
all agree that the lip of triloba is crenulated, but in my specimen there is 
no sign of that. S. triloba is considered to be a hybrid between Serapias 
Lingua and Orchis papilionacea ; although the ground was covered with the 
former, I could not find a vestige of the 
latter in the whole of that district. 
Also, the authorities only give the 
Riviera as the habitat of triloba, while 
I found my plant in mid-Italy, near 
Florence. In my plant the sepals and 
petals are each very distinct and 
‘Separate, not joined into a cap, as in 
all the other varieties of Serapias. It 
may possibly be a cross between S. 
Lingua and O. laxiflora, but, even so, 
it differs much from that pictured in 
Barla’s book. It is a somewhat 
‘striking plant, as the flowers are very 
large in comparison to the rest, both 
the labellum, sepals and petals being 
a very vivid shade of colour between 
pink and purple, the former a little 
‘darker.’ The specimen has now been 
presented to Kew by Mr. Cox, and, by the courtesy of the Editor of Nature, 
we are able to illustrate it. We may now attempt to clear up its history. 
There can be little doubt that the plant figured is a natural hybrid of 
Serapias Lingua, with which it was found growing, but the second parent 
is not quite so clear. Orchis papilionacea seems out of the question, for it does 
not agree with Orchiserapias Barle, Camus, now believed to be the hybrid 
between,S. Lingua and O. papilionacea—and Mr. Cox was unable to find a 
vestige of the latter species. On the other hand, Orchis Morio was found 
growing with it, and O. laxiflora not far away. I think O. laxiflora is the 
more likely parent, for the absence of green from the flower of the hybrid, 
and the spreading sepals and petals are more in agreement. In both S. 
Lingua and O. Morio the sepals and petals form a hood over the column, 
Fig. 20. ORCHISERAPIAS 
COMPLICATA 
