8 



BARKERIA ELEGANS. 



and liberality have been the means of introducing to this country a great variety 

 of new plants, which we hope, through the medium of this work, to make known 

 to the botanical world. 



Barkeria, as a new genus, is closely allied to Epidendrum, from which it 

 differs chiefly in the complete separation of the lip and column, the peculiar 

 position of the sepals and petals, and the winged column. It appears to stand 

 intermediately between Epidendrum and Cattleya, resembling the latter more par- 

 ticularly in its anther-case and pollen-masses. 



Little can be said with certainty upon the treatment necessary for the suc- 

 cessful cultivation of this plant. The chief point to be attended to in the treat- 

 ment of this and other newly imported orchidacece is to use for potting an open, 

 porous mixture that will allow a free passage to water, and yet retain sufficient 

 moisture to encourage the production of fresh roots for the support of the pseudo- 

 bulbs, without being obliged to have recourse to too frequent waterings. For 

 many species of orchidacece. drainers of broken pots are used with advantage ; 

 they should be broken very small (the dust being carefully sifted out), and mixed 

 with sandy, porous peat, using plenty of drainers at the bottoms of the pots. 

 When the peat is not sandy (which is frequently the case), a portion of sand 

 should be added. It may be increased, like other pseudo-bulbous speeies, by- 

 dividing the pseudo-bulbs. 



Fig. 1, lip and column ; 2, anther-case ; 3, pollen -masses. 



