70S 
O R C 
roots growing underneath confufedly, folded together 
like thofe of the common bird’s-neft orchis. The whole 
plant, as it appeared above ground, was of a violet or deep 
purple colour. It has not been fince found by any perfon ■ 
fo that it is yet a doubtful native of Britain. 
46. Orchis fimbriata, or fringed orchis : horn of the 
nectary longer than the germens ; lip three-parted, ci¬ 
liary; petals fpreading; leaves oblong. Stem upright, 
ftnooth, from ancipital acutely four-cornered. Leaves- 
on the Item from three to five, alternate, felfile, acute, 
fmpoth, quite entire, nerved, keeled, theathing at the 
bale, two inches long. Spike ovate-oblong, many-flow¬ 
ered; flowers purple. Native of Canada and Newfound¬ 
land. Introduced in 1777 by William Pitcairn, M. D. 
It flowers in July. 
V. Bulbs yet unknown. 
47. Orchis pfychodes, or American orchis: horn of the 
nediary briftle-fhaped, the length of the germen ; lip 
three-parted, ciliary. This has the habit of O. macuiata, 
and is a native of North America. 
48. Orchis fpedlabiiis, or graceful orchis: horn of the 
nectary the length of the germen ; lip oval, emarginate ; 
ftem leaflefs; leaves oval. Root-leaves two, oval, pe- 
tioled, blunt, almoft the length of the ’plant. Spike of 
five or fix flowers only. Native of Virginia. 
49. Orchis filicornis, or thready orchis : neflary bifid ; 
horn capillary. Stem half a foot high and more, fome- 
what flexuofe. Root-leaves very many, linear, acute, 
fhort; ftem-leaves lanceolate, acuminate. Spike of eight 
or nine flowers, remote. Native of the Cape of Good 
Hope, where it vyas found by Thun berg. 
50. Orchis tipuloides, or crane-fly orchis : lip of the 
nectary three-parted, linear, almoft equal ; horn filiform, 
very long. Root-leaves lanceolate-ovate, petioled. Scape 
leaflefs, except that there is a finall lanceolate leaf in the 
middle. Flowers alternate,' in an oblong fpike. Native 
of Kamtfchatka. 
51. Orchis Japonica, or Japan orchis: horn of the nec¬ 
tary recurved ; lip awl-fhaped, entire. Stem fomewhat 
angular, fmootli, a fpan high. Leaves alternate, half 
embracing, lanceolate, entire, fmootli, about fix, a fin¬ 
ger’s length ; the upper ones narrower and fhorter. Flow¬ 
ers in fpikes, lhow-white, very many. Native of Japan, 
near Miaco; flowering in June. 
52. Orchis falcata, or fickle-fhaped orchis : horn fili¬ 
form, very long ; leaves enfiform-channelled, fickle- 
fhaped. Root-leaves feveral, equitant, enfiform, convo¬ 
luted, fmootli, a finger’s length ; the lower ones fhorter. 
Scape ereft, fmooth, fhorter than the leaves. Native of 
Japan, near Nagafaki, in the mountains, among fhrubs. 
Propagation and Culture. All tiie forts of orchis, for 
the Angularity and beauty of their flowers, deferve a place 
in every good garden; and the reafon for their not being 
cultivated in gardens, proceeds from their difficulty to 
be tranfplanted ; though this may be eafily overcome, 
where a perfon has an opportunity of marking their roots 
in their time of flowering, and letting them remain until 
their leaves are decayed, when they may be tranfplanted 
with fafety ; for it is the fame with moll forts of bulbous 
or flefhy-rooted plants, which, if tranfplanted before their 
leaves decay, feldom live, notwithftanding you preferve 
a large ball of earth about them ; for the extreme parts 
of their fibres extend to a great depth in the ground, from 
whence they receive-their nourifhment; which, if broken 
or damaged by taking up their roots, leldom thrive after; 
for, though they may fometimes remain alive a year or 
two, yet they grow weaker until they quite decay ; which 
is alfo the cafe with tulips, and other bulbous roots, when 
removed, after they have made (hoots ; fo that whoever 
would cultivate them, fhould fearch them out in their 
feafon of flowering, and mark them ; and, when their 
leaves are decayed, or juft as they are going off, the roots 
fliould be taken up, and planted in a foil or fituation as 
nearly refembling that wherein they naturally grow as 
O R c 
poflibie, otherwise they will not thrive, fo that they can¬ 
not be placed all in the fame bed ; for fome are only found 
upon chalky hills, others in moift meadows, and fome ki 
(hady woods, or under trees ; but, if the foil and fitua¬ 
tion be adapted to the various forts, they will thrive and 
continue feveral years ; and, during their feafon of flow¬ 
ering, will afford as great varieties as any flowers which 
are at prefent cultivated. 
_ Thefe plants, fays Mr. Curtis, multiply themfelves very 
little, the fmall increafe they make appearing to be from 
off-fets; fo that hitherto we have no (atisfadtory proof of 
their being propagated from feed ; yet the feed-veflels in 
many of them are large, well-formed, and filled with’ 
feeds, which, though extremely minute, appear perfeft. 
The fmallnefs of the feed is Certainly no argument again ft 
its vegetating; fome of ferns, wliofe feeds are much fnraller, 
are now well known to be propagated from feed ; and it 
is moft probably owing to a want of minute attention, 
that the progrefs of orchis-feedlings has not yet been ob- 
lerved. Such as are difpofed to doubt the vegetative 
power of thefe feeds, may perhaps urge that their bar- 
rennefs is owing to their not being properly impregnated,, 
the antherie in this tribe appearing to be different in their 
ftru<fture from thofe o’f other plants, and not containing, 
fo far as we have yet been able to difcover, any flmilar 
pollen. See Aletris, Arethusa, Cypripedium, Epi- 
dendrum, Ophrys, Satyrium, and Serapias. 
ORCHOM'ENO, a town of European Turkey, in the 
M orea, anciently Orchomenus: twenty-five miles weft of 
Argo. 
ORCHOM'ENUS, in ancient geography, a name by 
which feveral towns are diftinguifhed. Homer, in (peak¬ 
ing of that of Bceotia, gives it the epithet of Minyan ; 
thus difcriminating between this and another town of 
the fame name in Arcadia, According to Paufanias, 
Orchomenus had been one of the moft confiderable towns 
of Greece. The Orchomenians appear, by Homer’s ac¬ 
count, to have been very powerful at the time of the 
Trojan war. When the fons of Cadmus emigrated into 
Ionia, in order to eftablifh colonies, the Orchomenians 
took part in their expedition. Their power excited the 
jealoufy of the Thebans, who drove them from their 
town; and, though they were re-eftablilhed by Philip, 
the father of Alexander, their condition was always 
feeble and declining. At Orchomenus, among other ob- 
jefts of curiofity, were a temple of Bacchus, a temple 
confecrated ■ to the Graces, and a building, called tlie 
treafury of Minyas. Here were alfo the tomb of Minyas 
and that of Hefiod.—A town of Arcadia, a little north- 
weft of Mantincea. This town contained, among other 
monuments, two temples, one of Neptune, and another 
of Venus ; and thefe divinities were reprefented in marble. 
ORCHOTO'MY, f. [from the Gr. a tefticle, and 
rsyi/v, to cut.] The a 61 of cutting off the tefticles. 
OR'CI NUO'VO, a fortrefs of Italy, in the department 
of the Mela, on the Oglio, built by the Venetians, to de¬ 
fend their territories from the Spaniards, who were at 
that time in pofleffion of the Miianefe: fifteen miles 
fouth-weft of Brefcia. 
OR'CI VEC'CHIO, a'town of Italy, in the department 
of the Mela : fourteen miles fouth-weft of Brefcia. 
ORCIA'NO, a town of the Popedom, in the duchy of 
Urbino: fixteen miles fouth-ealt of Urbino. 
ORCIA'NO, a town of Etruria: feven miles eaft of 
Leghorn. 
ORCIAT'ICO, a town of Etruria: eight miles weft of 
Vol terra. - 
ORCIE'RES, a town of France, in the department of 
the Higher Alps: nine miles north-weft of Embrun. 
ORCI'NO, a town of the department of .Liamone, or 
the ifland of Corfica, and diftrkt of Ajaccio. 
OR'CIO, A meafure at Florence, containing eight 
gallons and one quart. Ajh. 
OR'CO, a river of Piedmont, which runs into the Po 
near Chivazzo. 
OR'CIO, 
