JANUARY. 
17 
of the southern United States, New Mexico, and Arkansas, on sandy plains, 
in which last state it was discovered by Nuttall. The flowers are numerous, 
salver-shaped, about an inch across, white, sweet-scented, and open towards 
evening. The plant figured was grown by Mr. Thompson, of Ipswich. 
Lycaste gigantea. —“ This stately Lycaste is very extensively diffused, having 
been found in Central America by Hartweg, near Santa Martha by Purdie, 
and in the forests of Merida, at an elevation of 5-6,000 feet, by Linden. As 
might under such circumstances be expected, there are many varieties, differ¬ 
ing in the size and colour of the flowers, and also, though to a less extent, in 
the size and form of the sepals and petals ; the latter are usually of a yellouisk 
olive, while the velvety lip is of a dark rich maroon, bordered with orange. 
All the Lycastes may be regarded as sub-terrestrial, and should therefore be 
accommodated with large pots. They are readily grown in a moderate tempe¬ 
rature, but prefer the shadier parts of the Orchid-house. With the exception 
of Lycaste Skinneri, now such a universal favourite, L. gigantea is, perhaps, 
the best of its race.” The pseudo-bulbs are very large, being sometimes 
6 inches high, and bear two or three leaves 18 inches to 2 feet in length. The 
flowers have yellowish olive sepals and petals, and a rich velvety maroon lip, 
with a harrow bordering of orange. 
Combretum micropetalum. —A showy climber, a native of Brazil, which has 
been long cultivated by Dr. Moore in a greenhouse at Glasnevin, where it 
flowers profusely every year in September. The flowers are densely crowded 
in racemes 4 to 5 inches long, with yellow stamens three-quarters of an inch 
long, and orange anthers. 
The Florae Magazine for December has plates of 
Sipho campy his fulgens. —A stove plant from South America, which produces 
a long succession of orange-scarlet flowers, with a yellow throat: hence it is 
believed that it will prove very useful for cutting for winter bouquets, as well 
as for the decoration of plant-houses. 
f Delphinium Triomphe de Pontoise. —A pretty French variety? with good 
spikes of button-like blue and white flowers, in which the petals are very 
regularly laid over each other. 
Nosegay Pelargonium Duchess of Sutherland. —This fine variety has been 
already noticed more than once in these pages. 
Lobelia Progress. —A showy purplish crimson variety. 
OUR MONTHLY CHRONICLE. 
Paris Universal Exhibition. —Of the 
52 acres of ground which the Commissioners 
have taken for showing agricultural machinery 
at work, and for other purposes requiring a 
greater amount of space than can he afforded 
in the Champ-de-Mars, it was intended to 
have devoted somewhat less than If acre to a 
model market garden in which the different 
vegetables sold in the Parisian markets Avould 
have been exhibited in a growing state by the 
Market Gardeners’ Society. This was to 
have been done at the Society’s own expense, 
and the work of cultivation was to have com¬ 
menced in August last; but, unfortunately, 
the ground was not ready at that time, and the 
floods of September having laid a great part 
of it under water, the market gardeners, be¬ 
coming frightened, asked for a guarantee 
against loss, which the Commissioners would 
not agree to, and the project has, therefore, 
been given up. The intention was to have 
formed an executive committee of market 
gardeners, who were to give written orders 
for all operations, which orders were to be 
posted up, so that all comers might have seen 
what was done to the different crops, and as 
soon as one crop was cleared the ground was 
to have been prepared for another. 
Although a programme of the subjects in¬ 
vited at the several competitions which are 
to take place from April to October appeared 
some time ago, no particulars were given as 
to the mode in which they were to be shown • 
and English exhibitors have become anxious 
to know what the requirements of the schedule 
would be, and naturally so, for the time is 
