Ladies' Slippers. 87 



tance, but given- the herbage, nearly all the difficulties of 

 orchid- growing come to an end. 



Among the hardy species the first, without doubt, is 0. 

 spectabile, with its huge, finely-formed, rosy-purple lip. Next 

 to this we may place G. calceolus, which is still to be met with 

 in certain spots in the county of Durham known to a few, and 

 who happily have sufficient caution to abstain from publication 

 of the names of the localities. G. acaule, with the lip split 

 into two equal lobes, is both interesting and pretty. 



Among the species requiring to be cultivated in the stove, 

 C. Schlimii is at once rare and exquisitely beautiful. It produces 

 spikes of five to eight flowers each, the sepals and petals are 

 white and green, the lip mottled and striped with rose on a 

 white ground; G. bar b atvm, and its varieties ; G. Veitchianum, 

 so superbly striped ; G. caudatum, 0. Icevigatum and G. Stonei, 

 are the finest of the " tailed" series; in these the petals are 

 prolonged, so as to present, with the help of a little fancy, a 

 resemblance to mustachios set on each side of a gaping mouth 

 and extravagant chin — a burlesque altogether of humanity. G. 

 insigne is beautiful, and as it does not need stove heat, is useful 

 to persons who grow orchids in cool houses. G. villosum, pur- 

 jpuratum, Farrieanum, and hirsutissimum are essential in a 

 collection. The last is indeed a remarkable species, producing 

 flowers of great size. G. concolor is notable for the beauty of 

 its variegated foliage ; the flowers are yellow, with chocolate 

 spots. If we halt here, it is not because the subject is- 

 exhausted, but because we cannot afford more space, even for 

 any more of such elementary and superficial particulars as have 

 been hazarded already. 



