THE LIFE -HISTORY OF PLANTS. 



303 



0. Roezlli, var. alhum. — A charming plant, intro- 

 duced since tlie normal form ; it differs in nothing 

 except colour, or perhaps in want of colour, for it is 

 destitute of the large purple blotches on the petals, 

 and the whole flower is of the purest white, saving a 

 -stain of very pale yellow at the base of the lip. 

 Winter months. Xew Grenada. 



0. Rossi, var. majus. — As its name implies, this is 

 an enlarged form of the type ; it is a small- growing 

 plant, seldom exceeding six inches in height, and 

 thrives better on a block of wood or in a basket than 

 when subjected to pot-culture ; the small pseudo- 

 bulbs are ovate, bearing a solitary membranous leaf ; 

 scape usually one-flowered, but sometimes two and 

 three are produced : sepals white, broadly banded with 

 piu'plish-crimson ; petals also white, but the crimson 

 bands are mostly confined to the basal part ; lip large, 

 cordate, and pui-e white. "Winter months, ^Mexico. 



0. triumphans. — This, as its name implies, is a 

 splendid species, and it is one that has never been 

 introduced in large quantities, or has not become so 

 plentiful in collections as many other kinds. It is a 

 robust-growing plant, with large ovate pseudo-bulbs ; 

 these are slightly compressed and smooth, but with 

 age become corrugated ; they bear a pair of oblong- 

 lanceolate, acuminate leaves nearly a foot high, which, 

 like the pseudo-bulbs, are bright shining green: 

 scape erect, much longer than the leaves, usually 

 simple, but sometimes branched, arising from the 

 mature growth, and ten to twelve-flowered, each flower 

 measuring upwards of three inches in diameter; 

 sepals and petals about equal, spreading, ground- 

 colour rich golden -yellow, variously blotched and 

 spotted with brownish-crimson, or deep chocolate ; 

 lip somewhat heai-t-shaped, deep rose or crimson in 

 front, pure white at the base, where it is stained 

 in the centre with yellow. Spring and early summer 

 months. New Grenada, at 6,000 feet elevation. 



0. Uro-Skinnerii.- — This is one of the strongest- 

 growing species, named in honour of an enthusiastic 

 lover of plants and a keen observer, who, from his 

 long residence in Guatemala amongst the numerous 

 Orchids with which that country abounds, discovered 

 the secret of that want of success which attended the 

 cultivators in this country in their attempts to 

 establish these mountain gems. The ^vriter of these 

 notes has frequently been indebted to him for valu- 

 able information as to the natural suiTOundings 

 of many of the species here described. 0. Uro-Skin- 

 nerii, as before remarked, is a strong-growing species, 

 producing large and broad subrotund pseudo-bulbs, 

 which are compressed, and pale green, fi-eckled 

 with red spots and dots ; leaves broadly-lanceolate ; 

 scape erect, usually .simple, sometimes branched, ten 

 to twenty-flowered ; sepals and petals about equal, 

 ground-colour lively green, profusely spotted with 



reddish-brown ; lip large and spreading, white, very 

 thickly covered with round spots of pale blue or lilac. 

 Autumn and winter months. Guatemala, at 5,000 

 to 6,000 feet elevation. 



0. vexillarium, now coMedJliltonla vexillaria, is the 

 last species we shall enumerate, but the most superb. 

 The whole plant seldom exceeds twelve to fifteen 

 inches in height, and both pseudo-bulbs and leaves are 

 of a peculiar glaucous greenish- white ; scape erect, 

 thi'ee to seven-flowered, each flower upwards of four 

 inches across ; sepals and petals nearly equal, deep 

 rose or pink, in different varieties ; lip broad and 

 flat, deeply bi-lobed in front, deep rose, stained with 

 yellow, and streaked with red towards the base. As 

 there are now numerous varieties pf this plant in 

 cultivation, the flowers are produced nearly all the 

 year round ; the typical plant flowers in spring, the 

 var. rubellum in autumn. Cool end of the Brazilian 

 House. Andes of New Grenada. 



THE LIFE-HISTORY OF PLANTS. 



Bt De. Maxwell T. Masters, F.E.S. 



RIPENING OF THE FRUIT. 



THE ripened or matured ovary, whatever its. 

 texture and appearance may be, is botanically the 

 fruit. It matters not whether it is hard or soft, 

 edible or inedible, the ripened carpels constitute the 

 fruit, or seed-vessel. The thing is the same, it is only 

 the superficial appearances that differ, and hence it is 

 most convenient here to use the term " fruit " in its 

 botanical signification. This is rather an inversion 

 of popular custom. In the loose every-day talk of 

 those who do not know better, fifty or a hundi'ed 

 different things are called "Lilies," or ''Eoses," or 

 " Laurels," because, to them at least, the superficial 

 appearances are alike. The botanist hesitates to 

 employ such vague expressions, for he knows that 

 the things are different. 



During its change from the unripe to the mature 

 condition the fruit undergoes many and diverse 

 changes, according to its kind. In general the 

 stigma and style wither after fertilisation, and the 

 ovary, with the ovules in the interior, begin to 

 swell, and undergo various changes. 



Forms of Fruit. — The foi-ms of fruit are 

 nearly as diverse as those of the leaves, so that 

 we can only refer those who wish to become con- 

 versant with details, to the ordinary text -books. 

 For our pui-pose it \nll suffice to say that, after 

 fertilisation, as explained in the last section, the 

 fruit commences to ripen. This ripening process 

 takes place in very different ways, according to the 



