NOTES. 



The Beauties of Orchids. — The family 

 of the Orchidaceae, it must be remembered, 

 has long enjoyed a large share of the favour 

 of those whose means enable them to engage 

 in the culture of tropical plants, which favour 

 has, no doubt, been won and held by them in 

 consequence of the gorgeous character of 

 their remarkably formed and for the most 

 part exquisitely coloured flowers. We say 

 they have not only won and held this position 

 among the few, but that they hold also a high 

 place in the estimation of the many. If proof 

 be demanded, let the enquirer go and witness 

 the delight with which visitors hang around 

 these choice exotics at our grand floral 

 exhibitions. There they still command, 

 as ever, the highest admiration. — Robert 

 Warner, jS6j. 



u u u 



Vanda Roxburghii. — Flowers of a very 

 distinct variety of this Indian species are sent 

 by the discoverer, Mr. Chas. Power, of 

 Barrackpore, India. In the typical V. 

 Roxburghii the greenish flowers are closely 

 tessellated with olive-brown, the labellum 

 violet-purple, but in the above-mentioned 

 variety the flower is of pale yellowish-green, 

 while the brown colour is entirely absent, 

 leaving the chequered markings of so faint an 

 emerald-green that they are only visible when 

 viewed by transmii:ted light ; the lip is entirely 

 white. In thus losing the coloured markings 

 it agrees with other so-called albino Orchids, 

 although the varietal name citrina would be a 

 better term to use, for it has a recognised 

 meaning in this respect, having been used for 

 various Odontoglossums in which the removal 

 of the markings leaves a citron coloured 



flower. V. Roxburghii is of more than 

 ordinary interest, for it is the species upon 

 which the genus was founded and the first 

 Vanda introduced into British gardens. It 

 was cultivated by Sir Joseph Banks, and 

 flowered in his collection in the autumn of 

 1 819. It bears the name of Dr. William 

 Roxburgh, one of the earliest pioneers of 

 Indian botany and Director of the Botanic 

 Garden at Calcutta from 1797 to 18 14. At 

 the present time this species is not popular 

 with English growers ; m fact, it would be 

 difficult to find a plant in cultivation. Not so 

 long ago, however, the late Mr. J. S. Bergheim, 

 of Belsize Court, Hampstead, received a small 

 importation consisting of no less than 1 5 

 distinct varieties, which certainly shows that 

 the plant is not without interest. Going back 

 to the year 1835, a plant flowered in the 

 collection of Earl Fitzwilliam and received the 

 name Vanda concolor. It was considered by 

 Sir W. J. Hooker to be a variety of V. 

 Roxburghii, the only difference being in the 

 colour, which was a uniform cinnamon-brown. 



Dendrobiu.m Williamsianum. — There IS 

 a healthy plant of this uncommon species m 

 Mr. H. S. Goodson's collection, Fairlawn, 

 Putney, where it grows suspended from the 

 roof of a seedling Cattleya house. It was 

 originally described by Reichenbach in 1878, 

 from dried material collected in New Guinea 

 by Mr. Goldie, then employed by Mr. B. S. 

 Williams, of Upper Holloway. The flowers 

 are slightly over 2 inches across, the flat 

 sepals and petals of pale mau\e, while the 

 scoop-shaped labellum is mauve-purple. It 

 usually flowers in the summer season. 



VOL. V. 



28 



