9 
DENDROBIUM Pierardi. 
Splendid Dendrobium. 
GYNANDRIA MONANDRIA Nat. OaD. ORCHJDEjE. 
Gen. Char. — Labellum ecalcaratum, articulatum cum apice processus un- 
guiformis, cujus lateribus petala antica adnata, calcar semulantia. Massce 
poUinis 4, parallelae. — Br. 
Dendrobium Pierardi ; caulibus pendulis supeme nudis follis bifariis 
late lanceolatis, pedunculis siib-bifloris, labello indiviso tubiformi, ore 
dilatato obliquo, perianthii foliolis tribus exterioribus basi obtuse 
calcaratis. 
Dendrobium Pierardi, Roxburgh's MSS. with a figure. 
Stems, in their native country, pendent from the trunks of trees, and reach- 
ing (according to Dr Carev, in a note which accompanied the indivi- 
duals sent by him to the Liverpool Garden in 1819>) to 6 feet in length, 
cylindrical, much branched, with the branches tapering, fleshy and rigid 
jointed, green, and each joint seems to be covered with a whitish, pellu- 
cid, membranous sheath, marked with still more decidedly white lines, 
giving the whole an elegantly striated appearance. From various parts 
of the joints, particularly at the setting on of the branches, numerous 
bundles of whitish succulent roots are thrown out, which float in the atmo- 
sphere, or attach themselves slightly to whatever may come in their way. 
The leaves appear to be confined to the lower parts of the branches^ 
springing from the joints, alternate, horizontal, bifarious, broadly lanceo- 
late, about 3 inches long, thick and succulent, dark green, with longitu- 
dinal lines or nerves. 
From the joints, almost immediately above the termination of the leaves, ap- 
pear the Jhwers, in a lax raceme, almost constantly in pairs, (in Rox- 
burgh's figure occasionally in threes), from short^/boMa/A^^, alternate, bi- 
farious, large, and very handsome. 
Leaflets of' the Perianth all nearly equal in length, the 5 superior ones 
are pale rose-colored and spreading, the three outermost narrow, lan- 
ceolate, united at the base around the top of the germen, their 2 late- 
ral ones forming an obtuse pouch, which extends a quarter of an inch ; 
2 inner ones large oblong, faintly marked with lines. Labellum spring- 
ing from the inside of the pouch, one inch and three-quarters long, p^e 
sulphur-coloured, with some oblique, bright purple lines near its base. 
The margins are ciliated, and for the greater part of the length are 
curved up and meet, so as to form a tube ; the mouth, however, is much 
expanded, so that the whole labellum is nearly trumpet-shaped, slightly 
depressed, and oblique at the mouth, veined, and pubescent within. 
Column of fructification short, and wholly concealed within the tube, very 
broad at the base, and appearing to unite all the divisions of the perianth, 
white, tinged and veined with deep rose colour, plane or slightly grooved 
in front, semicylindrical behind. Anther ovate, white, 2-lobed, ciliated 
in the lower edge, moveable, separating horizontally, and remaining at- 
tached ; united to a filiform process, which runs along a groove on the 
VOL. L 
