May, 1907.) THE ORCHID REVIEW. 13 
account of the various hybrid Odontoglossums which have been raised in 
gardens, now fifty-nine in number, four of which also occur wild, and five 
are secondary hybrids which may also occur in a wild state. The first of 
these was Q. X Wilckeanum var. Leroyanum, which flowered in the 
collection of Baron E. de Rothschild, in May, 1890. As regards numbers 
M. Ch. Vuylsteke heads the list with twenty hybrids, Messrs. Charles- 
worth coming second with eleven, and Mr. Crawshay himself with seven. 
Mr. Crawshay considers that hybrids are more vigorous than species. He 
also collects further evidence in support of the theory that the so-called 
“blotched crispums” are of hybrid origin, as attempts to raise them 
artificially have not been very successful, owing to the reversion which 
takes place. And he remarks that ‘‘ whoever first succeeds in raising 
blotched crispums in numbers and of good quality will have earned the 
gratitude and hatred of the owners of Odontoglossa, according to the way 
each looks upon the matter, viz., scientifically or commercially.” We hope 
that they will preserve their equanimity, for we hold that the Orchidist who 
makes two blotched crispums grow where one grew before will have 
increased the sum of human happiness. A curious theory is discussed 
under the head of the ‘‘ Latent Germ.” Briefly it amounts to this, that not 
-only the offspring, but also the mother plant’s system may be influenced by 
‘crossing, so that if a given plant were crossed successively with different 
species some effects of an earlier crossing might be traced in the later 
result. We.do not think there is much in the idea, but Mr. Crawshay has 
made experiments with three different plants, and also crossed two flowers 
‘simultaneously with different pollen, as a collateral means of testing the 
‘question. Mr. Crawshay concludes with a list of the hybrids, showing the 
date of their appearance, and reference to a published figure, and an 
-analytical chart, showing the ancestry of the different secondary crosses. 
The paper is beautifully illustrated with thirty-three figures, twenty-one of 
them being from.our own pages. Mr. Crawshay concludes by saying that 
at present we have only scratched the surface of the subject, both 
itheoretically and practically, and that looking at the number of investi- 
gators and raisers now at work our knowledge will be increased a hundred- 
fold in a few years more. 
‘‘The Germination of Orchids,” by Noel Bernard, of the University, 
‘Caen, France, deals with the symbiotic relationship of Orchids and Fungi. 
He considers that fungi are invariably present, and that they can be 
‘separated and live for long periods apart from the roots in which they 
lodge, if placed ona suitable nourishing medium, yet the Orchids require 
‘the presence of their guests for their own development. In proof of this he 
shows the behaviour of germinating seeds in sterilised tubes, with and 
without these fungi. After examining large numbers of young Orchids 
Ls 
