DECEMBER, 1910.| THE ORCHID REVIEW. 355 
year to year. He now writes us that he has observed in the case of some 
hybrid Orchids alternations with respect to certain characters, which suggest 
that they are not fixed, the characters of now one parent, now the other, 
preponderating in different years. Sir John says: 
‘rt. Last year I obtained from Sander a cross between Cattleya 
Warneri and Leliocattleya callistoglossa. It flowered almost true C. 
Warneri, and I entered it in the book in which I put down the dates of 
flowering and the characteristics of all my hybrids. This year it has 
flowered again, but now it resembles L.-c. callistoglossa, having a fine deep- 
coloured lip and mauve-tinted sepals and petals. 
‘2. I have a hybrid believed to be Cattleya Hardyana x C. aurea, 
which flowered this year on Aug. roth, and the flowers were mauve, with 
slightly streaky sepals and petals, whereas last year when it flowered it had 
good pale yellow sepals, and a deep purple lip with yellow blotches. 
‘Now there can be no mistake between yellow and mauve; also I 
think this year’s flowers are much finer than they were last year. I have 
many crosses between short-bulbed Cattleyas, with one leaf on each 
bulb, and long-bulbed Cattleyas, which have two leaves. I am sure that 
these hybrids vary occasionally, sometimes having one, sometimes two 
leaves at the ends, and can you tell me whether this is always the case, 
and, if so, whether there is any rule with regard to it? 
‘Anyone who buys or sells a hybrid Lzliocattleya from a painting of 
the bloom, as people very often do, must not be surprised if it produces a 
flower unlike the picture.’ 
The writer remarks: ‘‘ Although we have raised and handled many 
hybrid plants, including bigeneric hybrids, we have never observed in their 
behaviour anything unusual, such as is here described by Sir John Edwards 
Moss, and the experience of three of the most successful breeders and 
growers of Orchids in this country of whom we inquired is similar to ours. 
Changes in colour may be brought about by an alteration in the chemical 
conditions in which the colour pigment is produced, 2.e., nutrition, light, 
&c., and, of course, the stronger and healthier the plant is, the clearer and 
richer its colours should be. This applies also to the pseudobulbs and 
leaves.” He then mentions the curious behaviour of the peach-nectarine, 
as mentioned by Darwin, the unaccountable fluctuation of Cytisus Adami, 
the “breaking” of tulip flowers, the dimorphism of Cycnoches and 
Catasetum, and what is known as “ sporting ” in various plants, concluding : 
“‘ These are well-known departures from the general rule of growth and 
behaviour. There is also the change of character known as degeneration, 
which affects some forms among garden races. These, however, are not 
quite of the same nature as the changes above described, for which we 
confess we are unable to account.” 
