THE ORCHID REVIEW. 227 
DIES ORCHIDIANZ. 
SOME time ago a discussion took place on the question of the degeneration 
of Orchids, and since then several interesting cases have been recorded of 
plants which have been continuously cultivated for periods of many years, 
but are still as vigorous as ever. The case, recorded at page 195 of your 
last number, of Odontoglossum crispum continuously cultivated at Walton 
Grange for a period of twenty-eight years is interesting in this connection, 
and there are many other examples, notably of choice varieties, which have 
been cultivated for many years without degenerating, from which it is evident 
that the culture of this and the allied species is pretty well understood. It 
would be interesting if someone could establish such a record with some 
notoriously difficult subject—Dendrobium Benson, for example, though 
others could be pointed out. 
Another remarkable Odontoglossum crispum deserves to be mentioned, 
namely the variety called Prince of Wales, mentioned at page 220 as having 
received both a First-class Certificate and a Cultural Commendation. But 
why the plant should have taken eleven years to reach the flowering stage I 
am at a loss to understand, unless it came home as a young seedling. Even 
this does not help us much, for seedlings usually flower before they are fully 
developed, and are rarely seen at their best until a year or two afterwards, 
while the present example seems to have gone on until it was quite abnormal 
in development, and then suddenly produced an inflorescence of equally 
exceptional character. It seems to establish a record for this particular 
species. 
I see that we have a figure of this exceptional form (Gard. Chron., June 
25, P- 390, fig. 145), which is interesting, because other fine forms may 
appear in future, and it may be necessary to compare them with the present 
one. But this figure does not at all agree with your report at page 220. 
It represents a flower measuring five inches across its broadest diameter, 
and only an eighth of an inch less from tip to tip of the petals; and in the 
text it states:—‘‘ Our illustration shows a flower of its true size, nearly 5 
inches.” Now I had the curiosity to measure the flowers of that plant, and 
I have also seen a letter from Messrs. Hugh Low & Co., written before the 
plant was exhibited, from which I extract the following :—‘‘ We have open 
a really marvellous white Odontoglossum crispum as regards its size and 
proportions, the individual flowers measuring 42 by 4} inches, and the 
labellum totally abnormal, 1} by 1% inches.” Thjs agrees with my own 
measurements, except that I did not note the length of the blade of the lip. 
Your report speaks of the lip as “ 13 inches broad,” but this appears to be a 
