March 4, 1905. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
179 
Notes on the Illustrations in this Issue. 
Angraecum sesquipedale. 
The above Angraecum was first discovered about the end 
of the eighteenth century, but the knowledge of it remained 
with the French botanist who collected it until he published 
the history of his discoveries in Madagascar in 1822. It 
created a considerable amount of interest in scientific circles 
when its peculiarities were made known, but the plant itself 
was not brought to this country in a live state till 1855. It 
first dowered in the spring of 1857 in the garden of the Rev. 
W. Ellis at Hoddesdon, Herts. The most notable feature of 
this plant from a scientific point of view is the great length 
of the spur of the flower, which, according to the specific name, 
should be 1| ft. in length. Those, however, who succeed in 
1 getting it 12 in. long may rest satisfied that they have grown 
: it with a relative amount of success. 
We have been favoured with a photograph of a fine specimen 
of this remarkable Madagascar Orchid by James D. Meek, 
Esq., Locksley, Helensburgh, N.B. The plant stands about 
,'j ft. high from the surface of the pot, and at the time it was 
photographed carried nine fully expanded flowers. Consider¬ 
ing the size or height of the plant, it is a well-furnished 
specimen, placing something to the credit of Mr. D. McIntyre, 
the gardener. The greatest difficulty in London and other 
smoky districts is that the flowers which expand during the 
winter are veiy liable to be damaged, or more or less de¬ 
stroyed, by the effects of such impurities in the atmosphere. 
On the shores of the Firth of Clyde, however, we presume 
the atmospheric conditions are much more favourable to this 
remarkable species of Angraecum. 
Forsythia intermedia. 
For many years F. suspensa was the best known species of 
the genus in gardens. At least two other names had been 
given to this plant, owing probably to its being introduced by 
different collectors. A little less known is F. viridissinra. 
Recently, however, two additions have been made, namely, 
F. europaea and F. intermedia, the subject of this note. It is 
a garden hybrid originating about 1891, when it was figured 
in “ Gartenflora ” 597 tig. The parentage was F. suspensa 
x viridissima. 
The plant which we now illustrate from a specimen in No. 4 
1 greenhouse, Royal Gardens, Ivew, has been in flower for some 
time past. A considerable number of plants had been pre¬ 
pared for early work, and had been brought into bloom by 
' gentle forcing. The clear yellow flowers are produced from 
the side of the shoots made during the past year, and do 
not show much difference from either parent, being about 
1 in. long and drooping. The habit of the plant is inter¬ 
mediate between the parents in being more upright than F. 
suspensa and less rigid than F. viridissima. It is, there¬ 
fore, more useful for pot work where plants of moderate dimen¬ 
sions are required for the decoration of greenhouses and con¬ 
servatories during February and March. The leaves are also 
intermediate between those of the parents. They are oblong 
: and finely serrated above the middle. We may mention that 
i hie leaves of F. suspensa are ovate, while those of F- viridis- 
' sima are lanceolate, and 3 in. to 4 in. in length. The plant 
represented was about 24 ft. in height. 
Iris bakeriana. 
The nearest allies of this-early-flowering bulbous Iris are 
I. reticulata, I. histrio, and I. Vartani, from which it differs 
by having a greater number of leaves of different form, though 
on superficial examination they might appear to be the same. 
It has three to four leaves instead of two from a bulb as in 
i hie other species mentioned. These leaves are awl-shaped, 
hollow, glaucous, and furnished with eight conspicuous ribs or 
ridges instead of being merely square with four sharp edges, as 
in I. reticulata. These ridges may just be discerned in our 
illustration. At the flowering time they are usually taller 
than the flowers, though they vary in this respect. The blade 
of the flower is 3 in. long, and the falls have a short ovate, re¬ 
curving blade with a much longer claw, more or less striped 
"ith violet on the upper surface. The blade is very hand¬ 
some, being of rich dark violet at the apex, the rest being 
white, handsomely spotted with violet, and having a median 
yellow stripe which runs to the base of the tube. The stan¬ 
dards are similar to those of reticulata, about the same length 
as the falls, erect and lilac-purple. 
This handsome species is’ a native of the mountains of 
Armenia, and has also been collected in Kurdistan and on the 
Anti-Lebanon range, near the River Euphrates. It was 
originally collected many years ago, but did not get intro¬ 
duced in the live state to this country till 1889. Iii addition 
to tlie neatness and beauty of the plant, the flowers give off 
the agreeable odour of Violets. 
It has much of the same hardiness as the other species 
which flower at this season of the year, and we have seen it 
bloom m the open without any protection whatever. As the 
Angraecum sesquipedale. 
flowers are liable at this season of the year to the injurious 
effects of frost and heavy rains, it is convenient to grow it in 
pots either in a cold frame or in a house devoted to plants 
of this class. A good fibrous loam with plenty of sand to 
ensure its porosity will meet its requirements admirably, 
whether grown in pots or in the open air. Our illustration 
represents a small pan of bulbs which have been flowering 
for some time past in the Alpine House at Ivew. 
Dendrobium cymbidioides. 
The flowers of this species are produced on a raceme ter¬ 
minating the stems. The tlowers are only moderate in size, 
but rather showy on account of the well-marked contrast of 
colours. The sepals and petals are oblong, moderate in size, 
and of a pale ochre-yellow. The lip is shorter, cordate at the 
base and white, with purple lines or stripes near the base. It 
is by no means a common species, and was originally intro¬ 
duced in 1852 from Salak, in Java. It was exhibited at the 
R.H.S. meeting on Februaiy 14th by F. W. Moore, Esq., Glas- 
nevin, and received a Botanical Certificate. 
