54 



OKCHIDS. 



Coryantlies macrantha. — The best of the genus, which 

 comes from the Caraccas, and flowers in May, June, and 

 July : lasts but three or four days in bloom ; the colour 

 orange-yellow, spotted with purple ; the lip is red. This 

 plant ought to be in every collection. 



Cor. maculata, from Demerara. — The flowers are dull 

 yellow, spotted with dull crimson ; blooms during the sum- 

 mer months, and lasts but three days in beauty. 



Cor. speciosa. — This singular Orchid comes from De- 

 merara, is about a foot high, with pale yellow-coloured 

 flowers, which are produced in April or May : lasts three 

 or four days in bloom. 



CYCNOCHES. 



This is another curious tribe of plants. Their flowers 

 are of a very peculiar form, being in the shape of a swan. 

 They are not thought much of by many growers of Orchids, 

 but some are worth growing on account of the curious form 

 of their flowers ; they are of easy culture, and produce 

 their flowers freely ; all are deciduous, and lose their leaves 

 as soon as they have finished their growth. The bulbs, 

 which are thick and fleshy, are from six to ten inches 

 high, and have three or four leaves on the top of each 

 bulb. They produce their flowers, which are large, from 

 nearly the top of the bulb, some of them several together. 

 They are best grown in the East India house, in pots, 

 with rough fibrous peat and good drainage, with a liberal 

 supply of water at the roots in their growing season ; after- 

 wards they may be kept much cooler, and should be placed 

 near the glass to receive all the light possible ; and during 

 this time they must be kept rather dry, having only just 

 enough water to keep their bulbs from shrivelling. When 

 they begin to grow, move them back into heat. They are 



