286 THE ORCHID REVIEW.: (SEPTEMBER, 1907. | 
GRAMMATOPHYLLUM SPECIOSUM. 
THE large specimen of Grammatophyllum speciosum which has for so long 
occupied a position over the water-lily tank at Kew, next to the Orchid 
Houses, has at last produced three very fine spikes. It made an unseason- 
able attempt to flower in November, 1901, when two spikes appeared 
(O.R. ix. p. 375), but they never fully developed, perhaps because so late in 
the year. It will be remembered that a very fine spike appeared in the 
collection of Sir Trevor Lawrence, Bart., at Burford, in August, 1897, when 
the history of the species in this country was given in detail (O.R. v. pp. 
268-270). The Burford spike measured over 7 feet long, and bore about 70 
flowers; those at Kew promise to reach similar dimensions when fully 
developed, but at present only a few of the flowers are expanded, and these 
mostly the basal ones, which seem to be invariably imperfect. Further 
details may be given later. Some of those who cannot see the plant itsel 
may be able to turn up the Botanical Magazine figure (t. 5157), prepared 
from a plant which flowered in the collection of W. G. Farmer, Esq., 0 
Nonsuch Park, Ewell, in October, 1859, when Sir William Hooker 
remarked : ‘“ From its vigorous vegetation, and the remarkable size of the 
flowers, it richly merits the title of the Queen of Orchidaceous Plants.” It 
certainly ranks as the mammoth of the family. AR 
R. A. R. 
CIRRHOPETALUM BIFLORUM. 
A VERY interesting Javan Orchid has just flowered with Messrs. J. W- 
Moore, Rawdon, Leeds, apparently for the first time in Europe. It was 
obtained by them from Java, and on comparison proves to be Cirrhopetalum 
biflorum, J. J. Smith (Jc. Bogor. ii. p. 104, t. 120, fig. B.). It was originally 
described as long as 1855, under the name of Bulbophyllum _ biflorum 
(Teijsm. et. Binn. in Nederl. Kruidk. Archief, iii. p. 397), from specimens 
collected on Mt. Salak, but like many other Javan Orchids was for a long 
time almost lost sight of. I have not yet seen the plant, but the scape, as 
in the original, was two-flowered. Th 
e lateral sepals are elongated and 
very acuminate, about 21 inches long 
, with seven purple stripes at the 
with very minute and obscure reddish 
» aristate, nearly a third as long as the 
lateral, and greenish with five purple stripes. The petals are broad, with 
three apical teeth, greenish with three purple stripes at the base and many 
pellucid dots above. The lip is much recurved, acute, mottled with brown, 
and somewhat darker at the broader base. It is interesting to find the 
species in cultivation, 
R. A. R. 
