2o6 
THE ORCHID WORLD. 
great preponderance of the purple pigment. 
This hybrid, which has reddish-orange 
flowers, was exhibited by Messrs. Sander and 
Sons at the meeting of the Royal Horticul- 
tural Society, November 2ist, 1905, and again 
on October ist, 1907, when it received an 
Award of Merit. 
The subject of our coloured plate is Laelio- 
Cattleya Firminii, one of the best and 
probably the finest result so far achieved by 
the use of Ljelia cinnabarina. The ancestry is 
L. cinnaVjarina X C. Mossia; 
L.-C. Hippolyta C. Mossiae 
L.-C. Ceres C. aurea 
I I 
I 
L.-C. tirminii 
This is again a further example of the com- 
bination of cinnabarina and Mossias with the 
assistance of aurea. When this was exhibited 
by ]\Ions. Firmin Lambeau at the Royal 
Horticultural Society, December 21st, 1909, 
it was unanimously awarded a First-class 
Certificate. 
At the commencement of this article it was 
noted that a red Cattleya coulci also possibly 
be produced by means of the scarlet Sophro- 
nitis grandiflora. This has to a large extent 
been achieved in Sophro-Cattleya Doris, a 
fine variety of which was figured on page 132. 
The two following hybrids are of great 
interest for they contain both Laelia cinna- 
barina and Sophronitis grandiflora in their 
parentage. 
C.Warscewiczii C. Mossiae S. grandiflora L.cinnabarina 
! ^1 I I 
I " r ^ 
C. Enid S.-L. Psyche 
S.-L.-C. Olive 
It is almost impossible to correctly describe 
the colours in this hybrid, partly on account 
of the many combinations possible and also 
because of the segregation of the specific 
characters which takes place in all trigeneric 
hybrids. It is at once evident that out of this 
seed pod hybrids may be obtained of both 
shades of red deri\ ed from either the Sophro- 
nitis or the cinnabarina source, and the 
influence of the large flowered C. Warsce- 
wiczii may also be visible in many of them. 
In hx'brids of complex parentage the amount 
of variation possible is \ery great, we may 
obtain plants having an ideal share of the 
species used in their formation, and thus pro- 
ducing an improvement of great merit, or we 
may take a backward step and even produce 
hybrids inferior to those upon which we are 
working. 
The second hybrid in which we have the 
combined influence of L. cinnabarina and S. 
grandiflora is Sophro-Ljelio-Cattleya Mara- 
thon, one of the most beautiful and happiest 
combinations possible. 
C. Mossiae X C. aurea S. grandiflora L. cinnabarina 
I i J I 
Empress Frederick S.-L. Psyche 
S.-L.-C. iviarathon. 
Here again the two reddish-coloured parents 
of S.-L. Psyche are in evidence, the great 
difference in this hybrid from S.-L.-C. Olive 
being that C. aurea takes the place of C. 
Warscewiczii. It has previously been men- 
tioned that an excess of purple frequently 
produced a muddy-coloured flower ; there is, 
however, a sufficiency of it in the share which 
C. Mossias takes in the parentage, and again 
we have proof of this species and cinnabarina 
successfully assisting in the production of a 
good hybrid. 
Cattleya aurea plays an important part in 
this combination, for by its inclusion with C. 
Mossiae the size of the Marathon's flower is 
maintained by half the parentage being 
taken up with two large flowering species, but 
only one has any purple in the sepals and 
petals. These remarks must be taken to 
aj^ply in a general sense, for even in this 
hybrid the variation is very great, and the 
different shades of colour beyond description. 
G. W. 
